Shadowchasers: Twice-Told Tales
by 7th Librarian
Summary: With an organization as large and old as the Shadowchasers, there's definately some amazing stories to be had in that rich history. As Jalal and the oddball man known as Adrian meet time and time again over the length of that history, they'll trade stories about the eight individuals who comprise the Backwater Shadowchasers. Currently playing: The Psychic's Tale
1. The Succubus' Tale

Shadowchasers: Twice-Told Tales  
By 7th Librarian

A/N: _Hello and welcome to my little group of short stories for the Shadowchasers. These stories center around a particular Shadowchaser who is assigned to the town of Backwater, Nebraska, though the stories can be from any point in their histories. _

_The goal of this fic to introduce people to the eight members of the team without having to churn through it all in the proper story that the team will have soon. As well as to expand on some of the mythos and use a few lesser-known elements from the Shadowchaser Files and everything. Not to mention it's a good chance write more creatively and do some things that one wouldn't able to write with a linear story. And of course, some foreshadowing here and there doesn't hurt, either..._

_So kindly read and review and I hope you enjoy these little samples of my characters._

_Fair warning, though, this one is rather dark._

TTTTTTT

_Paris, 1980_

It was nice, Jalal Stormbringer decided, to indulge yourself once in a while.

True, being leader of the Shadowchasers did not leave him with much free time, but there were rare days that there nothing pressing for him to attend to and anything else could be delegated out to his many capable assistants. When said days rolled around, it was best to take advantage of them. So after making sure he could be contacted in case of a true emergency, he excused himself from his office for the day.

Granted, he was currently in Paris to meet someone and discuss Shadowchaser business, but all signs pointed it to be a simple and enjoyable meeting.

He was currently seated outdoors at corner table a lovely sidewalk cafe that wasn't very crowded, despite it being the lunch hour. In fact, it was out of the way enough that there was hardly any traffic whatsoever despite the time of day. Nodding his thanks to the waiter as his coffee cup was refilled, he flipped the page on the paper and skimmed over an article.

"Anything good in the paper?" The speaker's voice as accented English, though it was impossible to nail down what exactly the accent was. "Or is it the usual drivel of you're a tyrant, the Shadowchasers are a bigoted group consisting of human oppressors and their lackeys while allowing evil such as ophidia, dark elves and rock'n'roll to exist and harm the good Shadowkind citizens of the world?"

"Just the usual drivel, I'm afraid." Jalal folded up the paper and set it aside, a bemused smile tugging at his lips. "Given half of your exploits, my friend, I'm honestly surprised that you never appear in this rag."

"That paper would never print anything about it me- it's all true and the truth leaves such a horrible taste in the mouths of the paparazzi." The man sat down across from Jalal. He was bit of a memorable figure. He was dressed in a violently purple trenchcoat, with gold and black detailing on the lapels and a red interior. His shirt was ruffled and so were his sleeves, while light glinted over his silver-white hair. To complete the oddity of a man, a pair of similarly colored cat ears flicked atop his head.

"At the very least, you would make an interesting front page picture." Jalal noted dryly as he gestured with a croissant to the man's appearance. "You could break the masquerade walking around like that, Adrian. Or blind someone."

"Of course." Adrian grinned. "I hide from detection by dressing so haughtily and gaudily that I offend everyone who sees me with my horrible fashion sense and thus they automatically delete my presence in their minds in order to salvage their sanity."

Jalal chuckled. "Had anyone but you said that, I wouldn't have believed it. With you, however, I feel that comes naturally."

"That's why I got married, old friend." Adrian grabbed a croissant and began to butter it. "Somebody else to take care of that kind of thing for me."

"And how is that lovely wife of yours?" The head Shadowchaser asked, taking a drink of his coffee. "It was a beautiful ceremony, by the way."

"Thank you. I'm still surprised we threw the whole thing together in a week myself." The other man smiled a it the memory. "And Mei is doing wonderful. Currently out retrieving a book for me, though. Little trinket that's hardly dangerous, but could lead to something even more dangerous if left in the wrong hands." Taking a bite of his croissant, he swallowed and used the half-eaten pastry to gesture at the half-dragon. "So, what about you? Ever think about settling down?"

"Hard to find another immortal that's on my plane of existence and willing to do so, Adrian." Jalal said dryly. "Not to mention I don't need my love life dissected by the media and papers. Half of the tabloids already seem to think I summon a new succubus every other month to use a sex toy and the other half think the succubi are secretly controlling me for Lucifer."

"Speaking of succubi..." Adrian smiled as a shadow fell across the table. "I'm glad you make it, Tsukihime."

"I came with you, remember?" The woman's voice seemed to a perfect mix of every accent, ever. She settled into the table's third chair. "I was placing our order, since your French accent is utterly horrible. I have never seen a taxicab driver swear so much."

"Yes, well, I can't be good at everything. And languages were never my strong suit."

She gave him a snort, her very nature making the sound delicate and attractive. "Says a man who speaks Supernal."

To the ordinary humans around them, Tsukihime appeared to the most gorgeous woman within a hundred miles. Even dressed in a sweater and jeans, they seemed to accent curves that a porn star would be jealous of and most women would suffer backaches from. Her face was soft and skin was perfectly smooth. It was pale enough that it made her ruby lips and sharp green eyes pop out, while her red and white hair framed her face enough to blend the entire thing together.

To Jalal, Tsukihime appeared to be the most gorgeous woman within a hundred miles...and that wasn't how a succubus should appear to someone who could see through the masquerade. Nor could he feel the tug of the natural aura of seduction and lust her species naturally generated and used as naturally as breathing.

For his credit, Jalal merely took a drink of his coffee. "Given how long I've known you and how much I trust you, Adrian, I'm not going to question why there is a denizen of the Lower Planes here, just why her powers don't seem to be working. I take you're using some kind of sealing charm?"

"A Rosario, Mr. Stormbringer." Tsukihime said and tapped a slender collar around her neck to draw his attention towards it. Attached to the collar was a symbol he never seen before- a cross inside the pentacle made by a six-pointed star and then a circle around the star and touching all six points. "Mostly for my protection rather than sealing my true nature."

"And what does she need protection from, precisely?"

"Well, for the moment, the world in general." Adrian gratefully took a teacup from the waiter as Tsukihime handed a bottle of wine and a glass. "Being a succubus without any summoner means that a lot of people, good and evil would like to have her in their hands or see her dead or worse."

He pulled the sugar over to him and dumped a few scoops into it before stirring it in. "And as a sign of good faith, Jalal. I did not put that rosario around her neck because I felt it was necessary. She asked me to do so specifically for this meeting."

Jalal looked at Tsukihime in surprise, but the woman merely smiled gently. "You have lived a long time, Mr. Stormbringer and your experiences with demons and devils have certainly left you with a poor view of them and rightfully so. However, this meeting is important for me and by willingly suppressing my natural abilities, you could be certain that you were never going to be unduly influenced or coerced into a decision that would favor me."

"That is...most considerate of you." Jalal said graciously. "And I am honored you are willing to make such a step. It speaks highly of your character." He gestured at the choker. "But that kind of sealing spell is holy magic. Aren't you in pain?"

"Ordinarily, yes. But this rosario is a symbol of my faith, so there is no pain whatsoever." Tsukihime poured herself a half-glass of wine and took a sip.

At this, Jalal couldn't keep himself from raising an eyebrow. A succubus finding a good-aligned faith and being devout enough that holy magic no longer hurt her was absolutely unheard of. "This is all very interesting and certainly more stimulating than any day the office. But what precisely is this meeting about, Adrian? This doesn't exactly seem like my area of expertise."

Adrian smiled over his cup of tea serenely. "It is when she wants to join the Shadowchasers."

Jalal nearly spat out the swallow of coffee he had just taken, his cup clattering to the table and spilling a bit on the tablecloth. After a moment, he composed himself and wiped his mouth clean. "That...this is...rather unprecedented."

He shifted his gaze to Tsukihime, who was regarding him calmly. "And you are serious about this?"

"Quite."

The half-dragon let out a breath. "There quite a few questions that have to be answered before I can even consider this possibility...but the one that has to be answered first is _why?_"

Tsukihime took a drink of her wine before swirling the liquid and watching her reflection in glass, her eyes briefly very distant. "It is a very long story, Mr. Stormbringer."

"To listen to is why I am here."

"Very well." Taking another drink, the succubus settled back in her chair. "I will tell you my story...it began nearly two hundred years ago..."

TTTTTTT

The Succubus' Tale

TTTTTTT

_The 1st year. _

Smoke billowed in impossible amounts from the small candles as all other light in the room dimmed before the lines carved into the floor flared with unearthly light. A powerful wind from an unseen source whipped the smoke into a cloud where a pair of glowing red eyes were suddenly visible. "What mortal has dared to summon me?"

Standing in a separate pentacle stood a lean man, with a pale face and unkempt hair. "I have."

"And for what purpose do you summon me, mortal?" Inside the smoke, she sneered to herself. He was hardly anything of a worthy specimen. His hair was greasy and his robes were torn and stained with various potions . He smelled of them, too. He was bony and gaunt, almost to the point of being sickly.

But alchemists and demonologists were hardly the sort to be wealthy and handsome and clean. The foolish mortals, craving secrets to plunder form the world and beings who found those secrets to be nothing trivia to them were almost all single-mindedness obsessed with it, to exclusion of all else. Save for hunger, sleep and thirst.

And it, as it all too often seemed, pleasures of the flesh. Though for the likes of mortals like this one, no woman would have them and she supposed that it made them feel more like men to call a succubus out of hell and partake of a forbidden fruit.

Her current summoner regarded her flatly, not emotion on his face for what she could only classify as 'professional intellectualism'. "Your purpose is to remain here." With that, he turned from the room and left.

"What?" She was so surprised that she dropped the theatrics, the smoke vanishing to reveal her full-figured dressed in a scanty version of a nun's robes. It was one of her favorite tactics, adding to the forbidden fruit aspect of her existence and making it all too easy to entice men.

Except, it seemed, for this one. She opened her mouth to call after him, but he was already gone and she closed it with a huff. Regardless of this one's peculiarities, he'd be putty in her hands soon enough and she could be gone from this plane with hopefully one more soul in her possession.

With nothing else to do, she studied her new surroundings in attempt to find something she could use to further her seduction. To her amazement, the room she was in possessed no windows, but was still well-lit due to the three candle chandeliers. It was much bigger than she had anticipated. Most of her summoners preferred to summon her straight into a bedroom.

But this room was massive, large enough that she guessed it had been a dining hall or gathering place of some sort or another. Now it was made to seem even larger than it was due to being empty of all the normal furnishings. The entire structure was wood, which was another surprise. Mortals generally used stone dwellings, particularly those dabbling in the forbidden in order to ensure less chance of discovery and whatever they did did not escape or damage anything.

She felt her tail brush against something and turned, finding yet another surprise. It was a bed. A simple straw mattress bed, but big enough that she could probably lay on it on her back and she'd fit there from the tip of her tail to the top of her head.

To further her surprise, she got a good indication of how big her summoning circle was. Most were just big enough to serve their purpose, but this one quite a bit larger if it was able to fit a bed inside it. And it incredibly intricate, far more than even advanced summoners used. A moment of study left her frustrated, as she found that even her extensive knowledge of demonic magic and arts failed her. The markings were untranslatable and she suspected that her summoner was using original creations.

That was his fault. Such things might work, but were hardly foolproof. She made her way to the edge of the circle and reached out with a finger. The magic sparked as her finger slid past the interior edge of the seal, but it wasn't painful. She grinned. These original creations were weak. Well, if the mortal had the audacity to summon her and do a sloppy job of it, then it was his own fault that she escaped and broke his body for her pleasures before stealing his soul away.

Confident, she took a bold step over the seal...

And found herself blasted back into the circle, singed and smoking as she uttered a curse in a language not found on Earth. The homemade runes weren't there to trap her. A closer inspection saw that the summoning circle was double-layered and the ones on the outside were powerful runes of a standard variety, but she hadn't recognized them at first because they were placed so close together that they nearly became one whole symbol. Clearly, he was not stupid or over-cautious, if he was going to these lengths to keep her here.

She bristled, her wings and tail twitching. Well, they'd see who had the last laugh...

But that ire and frustration faded into boredom as the hours wore on. At least she assumed it was hours, judging by how the low the candles were burning. It had never taken her this long to seduce a mortal or bargain for their soul before. And no one who had summoned had simply left as soon as it was complete before.

As the candles burned down to their stumps, he returned and she smiled. "Finally, master. I was wondering when I would be able to show you the pleasures for which you have summoned me."

He ignored her, instead stepping way from the door and gesturing at her. "There you are. Do not speak with it or do anything other than satiate your lusts."

"I can handle that." Another man entered the room, big and burly. Obviously a laborer of some sort, given his poor manner of dress. He grinned when he caught sight of her, revealing crooked teeth.

She raised an eyebrow and turned towards her summoner. "Master, while I do enjoy the company of mortals, yours is what I would prefer to-"

The sentence was never finished as the burly man grabbed her and pushed her onto the bed, kissing her. His breath reeked of ale and meat while his hands clumsily pawed at her clothes. He was utterly disgusting, but she had handled worse. She worked her body how he knew he would like as he squeezed her breasts and kissed him with a passion that she knew would make him feel like she was burning with lust as hot as the fires of hell.

The bed creaked and rocked with their coupling and not fast enough was it over. The laborer staggered out of the seal and it was only that he was able to do made her realize that the original work seals were suppressing her demonic powers. The kisses he and that man had exchanged should have made him her willingly slave utterly. And the lust she had been bleeding off would have made the most stoic of men blazing with desire for her.

She regarded her summoner with a new wariness, masked under her typical mask of seduction and lust. He was not an ordinary person. Putting her best effort into her voice, she smiled. "Tell me, mortal, how did you come by the knowledge to-"

Her question would have to be unanswered, as the summoner simply left as soon as the laborer did.

The incident was the beginning of a pattern, she found. He would magically restore the candles every morning, provide her with food and leave, ignoring her questions and seductions.

And every few days, he would bring in one or more new people, instructing them not to talk and she would bed them and they would leave drunkenly and pleased with themselves. And they were not always the class of people, either. Some wore robes of alchemy and others seemed to be merchants or well to-do peasants. Sometimes one, sometimes two a time, but it was a steady flow of bedmates every few days.

After what felt a few weeks of this, she was growing incredibly frustrated and furious. It was rare for her to be away from the demonic plane for so long and it had never happened in such a manner that she was treated a whore. At first, she had thought he was using her to repay debts or favors from those he brought to her, but their mix of status and race dissuaded her of that notion.

But she was helpless. His original runes suppressed her power and the one time she had actually tried to harm someone he brought to her, he had simply watched as she gutted the man and broke his neck. He had regarded the situation for a moment and then gestured, a pair of imps appearing to cart the body away and clean the mess up. It was if the gruesome death of another mortal was nothing more than part of their routine.

She would later estimate that it had been about two months since she had been summoned when she awoke to find two more beds and summoning pentacles alongside her own, one of the summons already in progress.

Was he a fool? A madman, to think that he could run a demonic brothel or something?

But that wasn't it...something cold twisted in her gut as she watched the summoning and another of her brethren. This summoner, he was too cold, too calculating to be after something as simple as money and if he wanted it, there were other demons he could summon that would spill forth the secrets to satiate any kind of greed.

The cold twist in her gut knotted as she remembered something she had glimpsed through the couplings he had forced upon her. A roll of parchment floating nearby, a quill magically scribbling out the words that he was mouthing and she could not hear. But one word that he had said stuck out in her mind.

"_Procreation..."_

He was trying to breed them.

TTTTTTT

_The 5th Year._

They had moved twice, the first time shortly after the summoning of the two other succubi and the second after what she had guessed was a riot outside the summoner's home. Both times, they had been sealed in Iron Flasks and then shattered open inside a new set of seals.

Her current location was in a castle of some kind, judging by the masonry around her. It was an actual bedroom, but the seal was only large enough to just reach the walls' edge. She wasn't sure how the summoner had gotten this location, but he had to be working or doing something important.

The pattern hadn't changed, regardless of where they were. Every few days, someone would be brought in and she would have to copulate with them. She and the others has tried to resist after a point, but the seals he had created could be used to create pain and even demons had their limits. Without access to their full range of powers, resisting was utterly useless. Even refusing to do something had done nothing for them- the power of the seals would merely force their legs open.

But she was patient. What this man was inflicting upon her was nothing compared to the worst Hell had to offer. And while he had the advantage, there would be a point he would slip up and she or one of the others would get free and show him that not even his cleverness would save them from their wrath.

As she paged through a book idly, scoffing at the supposed 'brilliant' works of mortal minds, she cocked her head as the sound of voices reached her.

"...my tests have shown ordinary men do not seem to be able to achieve the desired result."

"It is good that you come to mother church, then, sir. For through God's grace can we find answers to the questions posed before us."

"Yes. If my research is proven correct, you will show that the grace and power of the Church can tame even hell, that Christ's blessing and salvation will have be rightfully given to us."

She snorted. Once voice was the summoner and she had heard him talk enough to recognize his flattery. But the new one was interesting. Some kind of holy man. It brought a wicked grin to her face. To corrupt and seduce the men of God was always rewarding.

The door opened and she saw she was indeed correct that her new partner was a religious figure. But her eyes widened slightly at the fact it was a bishop and the items he were wearing were indeed holy artifacts-she could feel the power radiating from them.

He disrobed and approached her. "In the name of our Father, Lord and Savior, Blessed be thy name..."

The cross ring he wore burned her flesh as he grabbed her arm and tossed her onto the bed. It didn't stop has he threw himself atop her, the cross on his neck searing soft flesh as it swept and slid over her bare body. "For the meek shall inherit the earth. The power of Satan need not be feared by a righteous man..."

The only thing louder than his prayers that night where her screams.

TTTTTTTT

_The 15th year._

"Subject's offspring is interesting. It is not a typical cambion, nor is the birthing process as easy as it has been before. Theorizing that this may be a result of mixed human and demonic coupling performed on subject. If theory could be verified, must remember to...

How could she hear that droning voice taking notes of the screams?

She wasn't sure what he had done to them. Chemicals and spells had been injected and cast on their bodies, but either absorbed or ignored by their demonic heritage. But that succubus...they had only discovered her pregnancy just a few short months ago...and now she was giving birth.

"Subject seems to be suffering from shock despite demonic regenerative abilities. Damage from offspring cutting its way free seems to be cause, though other subjects do not seem concerned with what they bear. Suspect is is trait breed into them in order to preserve their species numbers. Offspring will need time to mature before they exhibit this or are a new species entirely. In the meantime, more samples must be collected..."

She clamped her hands over her ears, trying to block out the screams that would have made Hell itself flinch from their intensity and depravity.

"Demon subjects do not seem to suffer from inbreeding in the same manner as terrestrial magical species. Confirmation of this is needed and offspring from subject are male. Reminder of possibilities of tests in the future..."

The droning notes and the screams continued, with the sounds of something unearthly drawing its first horrendous breaths of air...

TTTTTTT

_The 25th Year_

"-your creations are dangerous."

"They preformed the services that you desired, did they not?"

"Oh, they're powerful and took care of that blasted guard captain and his cronies that have bothering me, but I'm having trouble killing them to keep the town rallied behind me. And they keep going after the women. If things get too bad, then they'll start asking the local lord for help! And then where will I be? Or you? Do you think you could keep this hidden if I was caught?"

She wasn't surprised that he was selling off the creatures that his experiments had created. They had moved a dozen times since the first generation had been born. Often torching their previous location to both hide what was going on there and to destroy the creatures he could not tame or take with them.

She had been lucky. She had not gotten pregnant. The creatures that he was harvesting from them were devastating things to whatever carried them...

Beyond breeding them, he had started messing with the offspring, twisting them and warping them with science and magic. And even in this day and age, the average mortal was still frightened of anything they did not know or understand. And these monstrosities would have been right at home in hell

"Very well. I will develop a method to lower this and next generations desire to procreate or at least find them a proper outlet."

"See that you do! Or I'll gut you myself!" The speaker stormed out of the building.

"You. Take this generation to the subjects. Let them rut and see if that will eliminate their libidos. And we need to see if they are fertile."

Her eyes widened at those words and the door to her room burst down, three of the massive creatures shouldering their way in. Half again as tall as a human, their faces lopsided parodies of their parents, too-long tongues liked at razor sharp teeth. Corded muscles bulge and flexed grotesquely as they advanced on her. They were nightmares given flesh, nightmares that were going to be given her flesh and nightmares that were going to give her their flesh...

The blackout came mercifully quick.

TTTTTT

_The 50th year. _

The summoner had a name now.

It was a dull surprise.

He had changed since the first year. His figure was fuller now, stronger and deadly. His face was still long and gaunt, but his hair was no longer unkempt and clothing was fashionable for the period.

And as she watched, the mass of tentacles that had replaced his left arm calmly ripped one of the creatures off another succubus. He studied the straining monster in his grasp, studying it calmly as it roared and tore at it's restraints. "Fourth or fifth generation, I believe...a new angle is needed. This species is becoming a evolutionary dead-end." As he spoke, his tentacles crushed the creatures into a mass of blood and gore.

He was speaking to half a dozen men that looked exactly like him, minus the tentacles. She recognized them as his own special brand of homunculus, ones that seemed to be able to exchange information and memories with one another via some kind of mental link. They rarely spoke, instead moving in a perfect eerie unison.

His experiments had taken an incredible turn in the last few decades. Despite the constant moving, never staying in one place for a month or tow, he seemed to be gaining ground at a rapid rate. More variations of his breed monstrosities were visible now and again, several even being able to pass for humans if they wore heavy clothing. And whatever he had researched had been applicable for himself, for aging no long seemed to be a worry for him.

As she watched, the original's tentacles wound themselves together and flowed together, transforming back into a standard human arm. He studied the corpse of what had been a succubus, nudging it with a boot and then strode from the room, his duplicates following. As they left, a swarm of smaller demons seemingly flowed out of nowhere and set upon the corpse.

It didn't bother her. It was almost routine now. She had considered herself lucky that the monsters did not impregnate her, but now she was wondering if death would not be preferable to the life she had now. If she died, then at least she would be back in Hell and whatever punishment awaited her there would be better.

As his new species grew, he had summoned more variety of demons and used them to breed or battle with his monsters to test their strength. And as the species grew, so did his clientele. Dwarves, dark elves, ophidia and more, she had seen passing through the hall and doors of his homes, even a demon or two.

But there was a caution to these meetings. She had overhead someone talking about a group called the 'Shadowchasers' that were cracking down on anything like the summoner's work. And because of this need for secrecy, he had adopted a name that would not be traced to him and at the same, identify to any who might need his services.

They called him Mister Monster.

She decided that it fit him.

TTTTTTT

_The 138th year_

She was so tired.

Too tired to eat, so they shoved food down her throat and forced her to swallow.

Too tired to move, so they hurled her into cold water and fished her out again to clean her.

Too tired to be good in bed, so they let the creatures use her as a vent for their frustrations. Her body had been used and abused in every way possible.

Flesh that had been soft and supple, the envy of women everywhere, was dark and bruised and dirtied.

Curves that had been full and strong and seductive hung loose and worn.

Her wings were crumpled and bent, tail limp and weak.

The fires of lust and demonic fury that burned in her eyes had not even embers now.

Words like 'wrath' or 'vengeance' and 'life' had no meaning now.

She had no use left for Mister Monster. His work had expanded, Now golems of stone and steel and flesh roamed the halls, accompanied by stitched together nightmares of the dead and living. The generations of creatures that the succubi had given birth to had been refined and experimented on, made better and spawned from any female of any species rather than ones from Hell.

There was shouting...

"You are insane! And inhuman!"

A scoff of derision. "My work is of importance beyond something as simple as 'humane'. There are creatures from other words and yet so similar to ours. To find out the potential, the possibilities of all interactions is a goal worthy of study, of achieving."

"You're a demon and a monster!"

"Hardly." A sneer entered the voice of Mister Monster. "If God created the humans of this world in his own image, how can it be wrong for me to create that is which my image? Your logic and foolish faith in religion defeats you. Not that I need my work justified by the likes of a fool as yourself. Leave me, now. You are interrupting my experiment."

"This ends here, you amoral bastard!"

"Morality is the delusion of the weak and fearful who refuse to understand that creation is an act that requires all possibilities to explored." Mister Monster said coldly.

A strangled scream of inarticulate rage and the roar of monsters or a man who was close to being a monster because of his anger and fear.

There were sounds of fighting...

A loud rumble began to build and she vaguely felt the magic surge through the air and there was roaring inferno of heat and light and she closed her eyes and let darkness overtake her...

…...

…...

…...

…...

"Hey..."

There was water dripping on her...

"Hey."

She opened her eyes, the effort taking a supreme effort. There was no pain, just the feel of cold water and cold brick and cold metal on her body and she realized that she was in some kind alleyway.

And standing over her in the pouring rain was a young woman, holding a newspaper over head in a vain attempt to ward the rain off of them and bearing the biggest, kindest smile she had ever seen.

"Would you like something to eat?"

TTTTTTT

_The 139th year._

The woman's name was Teresa.

Teresa was a struggling artist.

But she made the best potato soup.

Even now, one year after when they met eyes in that rainstorm, that was thought that ran through her head as she sniffed the boiling pot of said soup.

The apartment was small, with barely enough space for both of them. But it had hardly seemed to inconvenience Teresa and to her, the small space was comforting.

Time had been kind to her. The bruises were gone and her wings could carry her again if she tried. It no longer ached when she moved, no longer felt so hollow when she opened her eyes every morning.

She had learned much about the world, so unlike Hell and so unlike the time she had been summoned into.

But the world held little interest to her. For now, this apartment and Teresa were good enough.

Letting the soup sit as it boiled, she turned and slid into the living room where one entire wall was covered in Teresa's paintings. They were quite possibly the most incredible pieces of art she had ever seen a mortal produce.

They were of great majestic beings standing regally in a cloud-laden heaven, bearing resemblance to this plane's dragons and elves and phoenixes and griffons. And down below them, were twisted parodies of demons and other creatures of the dark and night, blazing with power and raw fury in the dark background of their frozen wasteland.

There was a total of twelve in all, six for each side. Teresa had said that their images had come to her in dreams, where she had seen them tend to the races on their world not unlike Earth and wage war against the threats against their world.

And each other, for the artist spoke of the dreams had seen where the six in dark had defeated the six in the light and then turned upon one another, devouring each other until death was all that was left. Death and a darkness that swallowed their world.

One of them always drew her attention. It was of a beautiful dragon goddess, greatly resembling Eastern Dragons. Long and flowing, her coils were almost endless and her scales were of white and gold, the spines running along her back varying shades of blue. And her silver eyes always seemed so soft and kind and if she stared long enough, the picture seemed to move...

Teresa had said that one particular was the goddess Erestrial, a goddess of love and hope and that in her dreams, she could hear the beautiful song the goddess sang. One that could make creation itself weep with joy and fill the heart with peace and strength. And then a bitterness would come over the artist, as she would gaze out at nothing and relate how that song was silenced when the six in the dark had sealed Erestrial away, that her song had made them unable to kill her. So they removed the goddess that loved them all even as they dragged her to an empty void and chained her to it, ignoring her song and her forgiveness and her tears.

She had told Teresa that she had never heard of that goddess or seen anything like the others, that they had never been mentioned in Hell before. Teresa just smiled and said that she had never said they were gods from here, now did she?

And when she had explained that Hell was a Hell for _everywhere_ and not just Earth, she had just smiled some more and asked how she could know so much about this.

Teresa had simply laughed and gave her a hug when she had told Teresa she was a a succubus, saying that "you're too cute to steal my soul."

The lid on the pot began to clatter and she darted into in the kitchen, desperate to keep the soup from spilling as the thoughts of six in light and six in dark fled her mind...

TTTTTTTT

_The 145th year_

"How did you get this money?"

The mortals called it the Great Depression. But they didn't know depression like she did, didn't know that there was a place beyond that, a place that simply left you living without a care of yourself because you ultimate realized that you, yourself, was pointless. That being sad was a luxury for those who had a value and value was a foolish notion that people fooled themselves into having so that they could be sad.

But the Great Depression was hard even without this understanding and loss of money and interest a non-necessity like art had left Teresa even more struggling than she was.

So she had taken steps to fix that.

But the artist was staring at the small pile of money on the table like it was someone's dead cat. "Where did you get this money?"

"I am a succubus. It wasn't that hard."

Teresa pushed the money away. "No."

"You need that-"

"Not like this."

"But-"

"No." The artist looked at her and she saw, not anger or fear or frustration, but a sad, heartwarming love that was so intense it made her take a step back. "I won't take anything that came from devaluing you."

That was not the response she had expected. She stared dumbly for a moment, before shaking her head. "Human morality doesn't apply to me. We don't see sex the same way you do. This isn't anything to me."

"It's something to me." Teresa replied firmly.

"...why?"

"Because I love and value you."

She stared again, almost disbelieving. "I am a demon. I haven't given you anything in the last six years. I'm a torturer of souls and men and tempt mortals to sin and I've been doing so since before your species could scratch rocks together to create fire. I haven't even told you my name."

"So?"

"You don't owe me anything."

"I don't. I'm giving it freely."

"Giving what?"

"Love and respect, for you don't seem to have any to spare for yourself."

She sat down, trying to comprehend what was going on. "...why?"

"Why not?"

"..."

"Just because you're a demon doesn't mean you aren't deserving of love and respect."

A bitter laugh. "I was born evil. All demons are born evil."

"But are you evil right now?"

A pause. "I...don't know..."

"No one, not a god, demon, devil, angel or mortal chooses how they are born or what they are born as in this world. And because of that, hardships can come to any living being Consequences that they have no control over." Teresa smiled quietly. "But in exchange for this choice being taken away from us, we were given the opportunity to make all other choices for ourselves."

"Demons don't get to choose to be evil. We don't get to choose to be summoned. Don't get to choose to be a terror or degraded or hated or hunted by humans and elves and we don't get to choose that all things good and holy want to kill us."

"But if you are born evil, then how do you understand good?"

"Good is opposite of evil..." She said slowly in confusion, feeling something was coming loose inside her.

"So you have to know what good is order to know that it is the antithesis of evil, yes? Doesn't that mean that, if you are capable of understanding the difference between the two, you are capable of choosing one or the other?"

"...it's not that simple. "She said lamely. But whatever was coming loose inside her rattled.

"No, it's not. If choices were simple, angels and demons would not be needed in this world to tempt and guide, for the mortals not be so indecisive and divided. But...we all have choices and they are always difficult. Even if we ignore them because we are afraid of them, for inaction itself is a choice."

Teresa moved and she looked at the woman in the eyes and felt the rattling thing lurch in her chest at the kindness and soft hope in the mortal's eyes. "I choose to love and respect you, for what you are. For the person I know you can _be._"

"I...I..." It wasn't until Teresa caught her that she realized she had fallen out of her chair and she was shaking and crying. "What do I do?"

"Choose..." She stroked her hair and rocked gently.

"I don't know what to choose!_ How_ do I choose!"

The smile was the most beautiful thing that she had ever seen. "Is choosing love, especially for one's self, ever wrong?'

She sniffled and curled, clutching at the artist's shirt. "I don't know how to love myself..."

"You will learn." Teresa kissed her head gently and she suddenly felt her heart swell, something coming from the artist that felt like the human was something more beyond what the eyes saw. "Because I love you, child..."

TTTTT

_The 157th year._

"I can't remember my name."

Teresa looked up from her easel, paint splattered across her face. "Beg your pardon?"

"I don't remember my name." She twisted the cloth of the dress in her hands worryingly. They were standing in the garden. It and the huge house surrounding it had been a reward purchase for the two dozen pieces of work that that gallery in France had bought to replace after the war. "I don't know who I am."

Teresa blinked. "You're you."

"I know I'm me!" She huffed at the woman, folding her arms and causing the buttons on the top part of the dress to threaten to explode off. "But I can't remember my name!"

"Well, you never told me, so I can't help there. And don't fold your arms. I want to paint you, not your boobs. Even if they are a very lovely part of you."

"Sorry." Letting her arms drop, the succubus blew a strand of hair out of her eyes. "A demon's name is what allows one to summon them. But it has to be my real name and I can't remember _that!_"

"Hmmm..." Teresa made a few brushstrokes. "I'm not a huge person on this true name stuff, but maybe that name no longer applies to you."

"...say what?"

"Weellll..." The artist peered around her easel at her subject. "We know that we can choose to change, right? Perhaps with all you have experienced and the choices you have made in the last few years have made that name useless to you."

"Makes sense..." Then she frowned. "But then what am I supposed to call myself?"

"How about Tsukihime? It means 'Moon Princess'."

"And why on earth would I want a name like _that?"_

"Because I suggested it and I'm perfect?"

The succubus stuck out her tongue.

"Hey! Don't do that! I only have so much pink paint!"

TTTTTTTT

_The 200th year_

It was rather empty spot for a headstone. A big willow tree out in the middle of a clearing in a forest that Tsukihime realized that she owned because she and Teresa had bought the land so many years ago.

But it was appropriate, to be surrounded by the things that she had painted so steadily for the last few years of her life.

At first, Tsukihime thought that Teresa had been younger than she looked when they had met. Even until the end, she looked like middle-aged woman, graced with soft silver hair and wisdom that ever fiber of her body spoke of.

But then the days had come when she could not get out of bed...could not find the energy to hold a paintbrush. One or two here or there...and then more and more as time pushed onwards...

The succubus turned the rosario in her hand. Teresa given it to her years ago, saying it was the symbol of Erestrial. Again, Tsukihime had tried to explain to her that such a deity simply could not have existed except in her dreams, but...

But...

But the moment she taken that rosario, she felt something suffuse her. Love, warmth and a kindness. It was barely an instant, but it was there. And now as she watched the light play off the polished silver, she recalled all the times that Teresa had seemed to be more than mortal, that her very love and warmth seemed to fill the whole room and all of the dark things in the world fled from that light...

The sound of footsteps caused her to raise her head and she saw a man just a few feet away. He was dressed in a black trenchcoat and outfit, his silver-white hair and kitty ears soft. He studied the headstone for a moment and then bowed slightly to it. "I am sorry for your loss."

"Thank you." Tsukihime stared at him softly. "Do I know you?"

"No. But Teresa did." He smiled a bit and suddenly there was a bouquet of roses in hand. Kneeling, he placed them in front of the headstone. "She was a wonderful woman."

"She was."

They stood there in a companionable silence for a moment.

"Was she...?"

"She was both more than you thought she was and less than what she should have been." He said sadly. "An echo of a song that has long since been silenced."

"I see..." The succubus pondered this for a moment. "I have chosen what I would like to do next."

"And what is that?"

"I would like to do some good in the world."

The man smiled. "Tell me, do you know what a Shadowchaser is...?"

TTTTTTTT

Jalal sat back in his chair, letting the weight of the story was over him and closed his eyes to think.

Adrian was busy nibbling the slice of cake he had ordered.

Tsukihime was sitting serenely, sipping some of her wine to refresh her dry throat.

Jalal thought.

Adrian nibbled.

Tsukihime sat serenely.

Finally, the head Shadowchaser's eyes opened. "That is quite the incredible story." Neither of his companions gave a response, for there was no response to give. "I would be honored to have you join the Shadowchasers."

"The honor is mine, Mr. Stormbringer."

"But..." A small frown tugged at the half-dragon's lips. "There are a lot of obstacles and prejudices to overcome...regardless of where you are assigned."

"Put her in Backwater. The town is all Shadowkind and Awares. One more oddball won't make any difference." Adrian swallowed his bite of cake. "And hasn't Rayearth been asking you for a eighth member for the last decade or so?"

"Good point." Jalal stood, gesturing for Tsukihime to do the same. "If you'll come with me, my fair lady, we'll see to getting your red tape sorted and find you someone to apprentice to."

"Thank you." She gracefully accepted his proffered hand and stood. "You are most generous to give me this chance."

He smiled. "It was good choice to make."

TTTTTTT

_A/N: There's the first tale. Like I said, pretty dark. Don't worry, our next Shadowchaser is a lot more lighthearted and the tale will definitely involve a duel.  
_

_Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it._

Later Dayz, all


	2. The Half-Breed's Tale

Shadowchasers: Twice-Told Tales  
By 7th Librarian

A/N: _This chapter is the complete opposite of the previous one, mostly to counteract the mood that one presents. It also features a character from another author's works. Specifically, MichaelDJ54's works. It is a roleplay/writing story he and I, along with several other authors, share that is named 'Guardians of Deus'. As such, if you have questions about said character or the story, direct them to him. _

_There are several unique cards in this chapter, however and those are my own original creations, so if you want to know more about them, get in touch with me. They'll be listed at the end of the chapter. _

TTTTTT

_About two weeks after the original Shadowchasers fic has ended. _

"Okay, so run this by me again." Jalal stood, in full battle regalia, flanked by a dozen heavily armed Shadowchasers and an Incantifer. The surrounding area had been a rather hilly glen, but now was essentially razed flat, charred and smoking. As the half-dragon watched, one of the trees that had been spared being eradicated and was a charred stalk of its former self, creaked and toppled over pathetically.

In front of the group was Adrian, his green trenchcoat ripped and torn and smudged with things Jalal did not wish to think about it. His hair was an absolute mess and the tip of his tail swished into view, the tip smoldering. "I got in a fight with a book's guardian in a dimension who's name I cannot pronounce, it swallowed me after I called it a poor excuse for a iguana and then it apparently qualified as a Shadowkind and got yanked to this world, because when I cut my way out of it, I was here and someone tried to arrest me."

A hand in the crowd of Shadowchasers went up. "That was me."

"You're forgiven." The kitty-eared man swished his tail in front of himself, licked his fingers and gently pinched out the tiny flame.

Jalal pointed with his sword, gesturing behind Adrian. It was a massive creature, two stories tall even flopped on its side as it was and a utterly massive snarl of what appeared to many, many necks nearly dwarfed the actual body. "Just how many times did you cut off its heads?"

"I kind of lost count after a dozen. It kept swallowing me." He glanced down at his trenchcoat. "Aww, I'm never going to get this out of the fabric..."

Resisting the urge to drive his palm into his face, Jalal sighed. "I don't know why I'm even surprised anymore. You getting eaten by a monster and then getting pulled into another dimension while fighting your way out of said monster is probably an average Tuesday for you."

"Don't be ridiculous." Adrian patted his hair back down into some semblance of order. "That's Wednesday."

Somewhere behind himself, Jalal heard the distinctive sound of several people face-faulting in unison.

"...what, doesn't everyone do that on a Wednesday?"

TTTTTTTT

Several hours later, the two men were sitting in Jalal's office.

Well, Jalal was sitting, paging over the tome that Adrian had somehow managed to keep hold of while battling the hydra. Despite what it had been through, the tome was miraculously unharmed and dry.

Adrian, declaring his clothes a complete and total loss after they had somehow come alive after being taken off and had to be incinerated, had become a rather fluffy white cat. Currently lazing on the windowsill in a patch of sun, he stretched himself out. "Nothing like a warm patch of sun on your tummy to make a bad day a good one..."

"Simple minds, simple pleasures." Jalal murmured to himself as he traced a line of runes with his finger, carefully separating each one from the last. Whoever had written the book had rather cramped handwriting.

"I heard that, but I'm too content trade wits with you, Jalal."

"Good. Yours is rather blunted. But maybe you can swap it on Ebay for a new one."

"Har-har." Rolling over, the cat settled on his paws and curled his tail around him. "Sorry about the mess, though. That species hydra wasn't even on the Shadow homeworld and certainly wasn't intelligent by any means of the world. And I didn't realize it's blood would explode on contact with lightning..."

"At least you retrieved the book. And killed the hydra. It could have caused a lot more damage if it had just come into world without any warning." Jalal pulled a bookmark out of the desk and slid it into place, closing the book carefully. "But whatever force it is that's pulling Shadows from their world into this one, I wasn't aware it could reach beyond that."

"Sure it can." The cat peered out with one eye at the other immortal. "But I don't know what force it is. And neither of any of the deity-level or above I talk to about it know what it is, either. Granted, my circle of friends at that level is rather small. Most of them get kind of cranky if a guy who isn't one of their worshipers starts showing up and asking for things...ask for a cup of sugar and they want you to convert."

"So what have you learned about this force, then?"

"Well, calling it a 'force' is a bit of a misnomer. That would imply it's working for something, right? But given that it pulls Shadows indiscriminately, regardless of alignment or belief, it's not any of the major players. And the lesser deities really don't benefit from it ether." An ear twitched, flicking a fly away. "But none of them can identify it or tell what it is, can they? Morganna's Kin hasn't got an answer, either. Their travels haven't given up any answers and the Origin Universe is empty on the subject."

He yawned, revealing some cute little fangs. "The biggest going theory is that it's some sort of 'balancing act' done by creation in response to something else going on in the Multiverse. What or who it's trying balance is beyond even the gods' ken, if that's true. But so far, it makes the most sense to those who know a bit more than the rest of creation about. Otherwise, you're really only left with the options of either the Multiverse is so screwed up that that force is a giant glitch or God is moving things around because it's part of his plan. Or he's bored. I doubt anyone can know his mind, though."

"Interesting..." Jalal sat back in his chair, drumming his fingers on the desk thoughtfully. "Still, traveling between dimensions isn't exactly a walk in the park. And to be able to transplant the countless number of Shadows it takes so precisely is a bit amazing when one thinks about it."

"There is that." Adrian agreed, flicking his tail tip. "I can do it because of my home's location between time and space and such. Morganna's Kin manipulates quantum foam. And you Shadowchasers can set up portals and the like. Yet this force just seems to teleport them from one place to another and wipes their minds in the process. Not even a blind teleportation, either. There is that story of those two elves who got nabbed at the same time on the Shadow homeworld, right next to each other and then wound up in two different places on Earth."

"Mhmm..." Jalal nodded and then winced slightly. "But dimensional travel is dangerous, too. Morganna's Kin has told me one or two stories about those who thought they were good with the travel, only to wind up in the pits of danger...or lost between dimensions...or dead."

The cat stretched out, sprawling on his side happily in the sun. "It's not for everyone. But you'd be surprised at how many in the 12 Dimensions think that they can pull it off."

"Mmm...we don't know much about the 12 Dimensions. It's not exactly our purview." Jalal chuckled. "Hard enough to be sheriffs on the Earth as it is."

"I can imagine." The cat rolled over, so that he was staring at Jalal upside-down. "The long and short of it is that what you call the 12 Dimensions form a perfect circle and are all linked, strangely enough, by Duel Monsters."

"A card game forms a perfect circle?"

"In a sense. After all, didn't Jaden Yuki and his cohorts travel to another world where Duel Monsters were the primary species?" Adrian settled to all fours and studied his friend, his violet eyes ageless and deep. "I haven't really studied it, but it seems that that card game links them all, with the Shadow Realm acting dark center of the ring. And if the dimensions are gemstones, the Spirit World is the ring they are set into."

Jalal nodded slowly. "That makes a lot of sense, but if each dimension is connected to the others by the Spirit World, shouldn't it show effects from all 12 Dimensions through it?"

"That's because it's not the same Spirit World for each dimension. Treating it as a ring, each Spirit World would only connect two different dimensions." His whiskers twitched. "Do keep in mind, that this is a 'perspective' on how something works. It is utterly an incomplete analogy given the vast nature of the Multiverse. If your perspective changes, say by via becoming a god, then so does this image."

"I know, my friend." A smile touched Jalal's face. "We have had talks like this before." A curious expression crossed his face. "But your theory does put an interesting angle on a story one of my men told me a while back."

"Oh?" Settled into a half asleep pose, Adrian fixed a languid gaze on his friend. "Do tell. We're not exactly going anywhere..."

"True enough." The head of the Shadowchasers grabbed his cup of coffee and took a drink before starting. "The kid is pretty unusual. He's got a family tree that has every human-compatible Shadowkind in it somewhere and they're all bit crazy. Even has a Duel Spirit with him. And seems to get into the worst kinds of situations, too. Including dealing with a Giant Rex."

"A Duel Monster?"

"The spirit of one and it was very real, for some reason or other. The incident I'm talking about happens just a few days ago, after his twenty-first birthday..."

TTTTTTT

The Half-Breed's Tale

TTTTTTT

"_Far beyond our boundary, a danger has emerged! Far out in the black, it's getting ready to attack! Cold and tearless retinas are staring at the world! Raiders from an ancient land-"_ The heavy metal rock and lyrics of Iron Savior were summarily cut short as a fist darted out from underneath the lump of blankets on the bed and smashed down on the clock. The poor device slipped out from underneath the fist, clattering and bouncing across the floor in a fashion that was as nearly as loud as the song.

Silence remained booted out of the room, however, as a loud and long groan emerged from the pile of blankets. It shuffled and rocked, a few of the blankets slipping and sliding off as a mess of brown hair pushed its way free of the mass, followed shortly by a bleary face. "Oh dear god, it's like a drill in one temple..and a drill in the other temple...and they're meeting in the middle..."

With another groan, he sat up, holding his head in his hands in a vain attempt to keep his head from exploding. It wasn't helped by the fact the morning sun was doing its damnedest to prove itself annoying, beaming full force through the cracks in the window blind. "Neo...? Neo, a little help, man...like getting rid of the sun?"

The person he was addressing was in fact not a person at all. It was a phantasmal, translucent tall blonde-haired man. He was wearing archaic armor that seemed to be more for looks than function, as it came replete with a cape and filigree in gold over the chest and shoulder pieces. He stood, swaying on his feet slightly. (_To...to...honor and glory, friends...raise the flagon once more...for..for..honor and glory...Squire Tsubasa, another round for our friends!)_

Tsubasa watched as the man hiccuped and took a staggering step forwards before toppling over like a marionette with its strings cut. "You're a lot of help..."

Lurching himself out of bed, the young man stumbled for the window. Shedding blankets like they were feathers and he was molting, he scrabbled for the handle on the blind. Only to give a shriek of terror as his flailing hand snared the blind itself, parting the panels and flooding the room with light directly into his face. "Oh god! Natural light! MY EYES! MY EYES! IT BURRRRNNNSS!"

He stumbled backwards, tripping over the rising Neo and toppling into a heap of blankets that completely covered his form. "Oh dear god, someone left the sun on so high that it burned my eyes! I"m blind!"

Neo jumped to his feet, a hiccup causing him to sway as he produced his sword form thin air. (_Who...who darest sully my...my honor by tripping over me!?)_ He caught sight of the rising pile of blankets and bedclothes, accompanied by a anguished moan from Tsubasa inside them. (_A hag!? Vile woman, you shall pay for my honor with your blood!) _

He held up a hand, fingertip glowing as he traced a rune of some kind in the air. (_Perpar..prepa...prepare for...for) _A hiccup caused him to skew a line on the rune out of place, though he did not seem to notice. (_For...for..just...just...just lice!) _

Then the fumbling Tsubasa crashed him, the rune shimmered violently and a massive explosion rocked the room.

TTTTTT

Tsukihime hummed to herself as she settled into a chair at the kitchen table, a mug of tea in one hand and the morning paper in the other. "Nothing like a quiet, simple morning..." As an explosion rocked the building, her serene expression did not fade as she took a drink of her tea and continued to read.

Moments later, a blanket-swamped Tsubasa lurched and staggered into the room, the bed coverings smoldering a bit and random arcs of magic twitching along his form. "Coffeeeeeeee...nnnnn...cofffeeeeeeeeeee...ggtah..."

The succubus peered at him over the top of her paper. "I'm sorry, but we don't serve zombies in here. You'll have to take your business elsewhere, sir."

He groaned in pain and vainly attempted to cover ears with a single hand as the other pulled him along the counter towards the coffee pot. "Don't talk...feels like gravel inside my skull..."

"It is your own fault, Tsubasa." She ignored the groans of pain from him. "Twenty-first birthday or not, you chose to party all night."

The coffee pot vanished into the human-shaped blob of blankets. The sounds of gulping were heard and then the now-empty pot was spat back out, clattering onto the counter. A few more moments passed and Tsubasa's head, hair standing straight up, emerged. He rubbed at his eyes blearily. "I only turn twenty-one once...and my cousin got some strippers for the party..."

"Ah, of course. The tantalizing flesh of women who probably couldn't even spell your name, let alone pronounce it is more than enough reason to lose a night's sleep over." Tsukihime shook her head bemusedly as she drank some tea. "Men really haven't progressed during the Stone Age...though back then, grunting the name 'Ugh!' turned ever head in the room..."

"Funnnnnyyy..." Tsubasa drawled. Apparently, the coffee had restored enough of his cognitive functions to the point where he had a personality. "Weren't you the stripper in a cake for someone just last week?"

"An old friend for his 150th birthday." She clarified and flipped the page on the paper deftly. "And 'stripping' implies that all of my clothes eventually came off. Which they did not. Unlike those women you saw last night, I do not reveal all of my secrets. " She smiled happily at a memory. "Well, not at least until Fayte and I got back to her room..."

"Ugh, no, no no!" The youth waved at the air like he could shove the words away from his ears. "I don't want to ruin my memories of the glorious last night with thoughts of two old women who could be my great-great-great grandmother's doing things like that!"

Then his eyes widened and he clutched at his head. "Oh god, I said it and now I'm thinking about it! NOOOOOOOO!"

"Tsubassssaaa..." He froze and turned to look at Tsukihime, who was regarding him with a closed-eyed smile that seemed pleasant enough...if not for the burning black aura that seemed to surround her. "What was that about me being 'old'?"

"I...I mean..it was...I..." He gulped nervously. "Well, you...you are kind of getting on years, r-right?"

Her smile broadened and the aura doubled in size. "It's rather inconsiderate to judge a woman by her years like that, isn't it?"

"Y-yeah...you're like...like a big sister!" Tsubasa laughed nervously, trying to reinforce his statement. "A big sister that I never had!"

"Well, that's kind of you to say so." She offered her cup of tea to him in a toast cheerfully, the dark foreboding gone like it had never been there. Then her face became irritated. "You smell. And look horrible. Go get dressed and go for walk to get rid of that hangover."

"The sun tried to blind me...and you want me to outside in that thing!? It'll burn my skin down to the bone! It has it in for me!"

She stared at him. "I"m not even going to try and figure out how that statement made sense in your head. Just go." He didn't move. "Do you think if I whistled high enough, your head would explode?"

The blankets were fluttering to the floor the moment she got the word 'whistled' out.

TTTTTTT

"Okay, how did you get drunk!?" Tsubasa, now dressed in a t-shirt and jeans stalked down the sidewalk, hands stowed into his pockets. His duel disk was strapped to his wrist, his reasoning being that if he was forced to go outside, then maybe he'd at least get some entertainment out of it.

_(I...do not know...)_ Neo hovered along a few inches behind his partner, rubbing at his face. (_I think that dwarf had challenged me to a drinking contest...)_

"You're a a Duel Spirit! No one else can see you!" The Shadowchaser whirled and jabbed a finger at the being's chest. "And how knightly is it for you to accept a drinking contest with a dwarf!?"

Neo puffed out his chest, looking stern. _(A knight's honor is on the line whenever he is challenged! And when it is challenged, you must do your utmost to give a good showing, squire!)_ Then he deflated, holding the side of his head in a hand with a moan. (_Even if the result is a bunch of tiny little mind-dwarfs armed with pickaxes and rock music trying to tunnel their way out of your brain so they may drink gemstones...) _

"...and people say I don't make sense." Tsubasa threw up a hand and turned a loud yell sounded. "What now?"

His answer came in the form of a elven youth, several years younger than him, came running around the corner. "All I wanted was a pet! Why did this have to happen!?"

"Hey, slow down!" Tsubasa caught the kid by the arm and pulled him around so they were face-to-face. "Where's the fire? What are you talking about, wanting a pet?"

The boy squirmed. "My parents won't let me get a cat, so I thought I'd just summon up a monster from a card to be my pet!"

"Well, that's just silly. You can't-" Tsubasa's jaw dropped as a massive T-Rex stomped its way around the corner, the crest on its back identifying it as it a Giant Rex Duel Monster.

He glanced down at the kid, pointing wildly at the dinosaur. "You wanted that thing for a pet!?"

"Well, yeah!" The kid said, suddenly indignant at having his choice questioned. "Who doesn't want a dinosaur for a pet! They're awesome!"

"You have a point...always wanted to ride a triceratops..." Tsubasa blinked as the Giant Red roared again and swiveled its head, catching sight of them. "Oh right, yeah...running for our lives now!" With that, he caught the kid by the collar and ran as fast as he could in the opposite direction.

Another roar and the sound of concrete being crunched told them that the Giant Rex wasn't going to let them go. "Neo! Neo! Hey!"

The Duel Spirit was farther up the street, holding his stomach as he leaned against a trash can. _(Curse those foul dwarven ales for being so good...)_

"What!? NO!?" Tsubasa vaulted over a mailbox. "You can't get drunk and you can't get sick! Especially not now! I'm going to get_ eaten!_"

(_What...?)_ The Duel Spirit lifted his head, startled as he saw the Giant Rex stomping in his direction. (_That thing is a Duel Spirit...made real?)  
_

"Yeah, this kid-" Said kid was summarily shoved into an alleyway as Tsubasa then leapt in the opposite direction, the dinosaur snapping and chomping after the Shadowchaser. "Tried to summon it to be his pet and it made it real..somehow..I don't know, you're the magic guy!"

(_And a knight does not run!)_ Neo stood tall, producing his sword. (_I will return this creature from whence it came!)_

"_Wonderful _idea!" Tsubasa yelled over his shoulder as the Giant Rex snapped at his heels. "Now would be a really good time to make it happen!" He shrieked as he ran over a car and the dinosaur simply crushed. "Oh god, I don't want to have to pay for that!"

His partner vanished from where he was, reappearing alongside the Shadowchaser. (_Your rampage is ended creature!)_ His sword began to glow sharply and he slashed it through the air. It left a trail of light that split and widened, becoming a swirling portal.

"Alright!" Tsubasa pumped a fist into the air...then froze in mid-action as the portal began to spin violently, seemingly lurching towards them. "Uhhh...why is that portal coming towards us?"

Neo was too busy to answer, bent over his knees and holding his stomach.

"Seriously, man, you cannot hold your alcohol" Tsubasa yanked Neo around and shook him. "And you're a Duel Spirit! _HOW ARE YOU DRUNK!" _

There was no answer as he glanced up just in time to see the portal swallow them.

TTTTTT

"So...my Duel Spirit got drunk because, you know, why not? And because he was drunk, he couldn't really control the portal he opened and it randomly teleported us to the Spirit World?"

"That about sums it up."

"Greaaatttt..." Tsubasa buried his face in a hand and groaned. "We don't even know where 'here' is, do we?"

"As near as I can tell, we can't." The speaker was a man about Tsubasa's age, dressed in slacks, a black shirt and silvery white trenchcoat. Brushing a bit of his brown hair out of his eyes, he nudged his glasses farther up the bridge of nose. "I'm going to take a wild guess, though, and say it's some kind of prison."

"What tipped you off? The lack of doors and windows or the fact it's a giant dome made of cold, gray stone?"

Indeed, the pair were standing in the large building. Designs and patterns were exquisitely carved into the walls and ceiling and since they could, there was some kind of decent light source somewhere, but other than that, there was nothing else.

Tsubasa took in their surroundings once again, hoping that he had missed something the first time and let out a deep sigh as he realized he had not. "I hate my life."

The other man clapped him on the back sympathetically. "Cheer up. At least now I have company and you don't seem to be a bad sort of fellow."

"Thanks." Tsubasa straightened and held out his hand. "Tsubasa Springweather."

"You can call me Craig." The man shook his hand. "At least you know how you got here. My friends and I were dueling this nutcase and somehow, whatever he...or we...or_ somebody _did...ripped a hole in dimensions and I wound up here."

"Well, if portals can be opened _to _here, they should be able to be opened _out_ of here, right?" Tsubasa turned around. "Neo, how about it? Can you help us out?"

(_I cannot, squire.)_ The knight shook his head. _(I do not feel my usual powers here and even if I could...)_ He lurched a bit and looked a little green. _(I am still...out of sorts...)_

_(Figures.)_ The voice was female and amused. _(The mighty Neo the Magical Swordsman, laid low by a hangover.) _

The Shadowchaser turned to see a figure suddenly phase into existence behind Craig. She was a tall woman with violet hair that nearly brushed the floor. She was dressed in outfit that reminded Tsubasa of the ones goddesses wore in _Ah! My Goddess_. It was split down to the navel and was apparently only held on due to the fullness of her chest. It also left a long jagged scar visible down from her left shoulder down to the right hip. All in all, she was almost unnaturally beautiful and the Shadowchaser couldn't suppress a whistle. "Damn..why weren't you at my party last night?"

To his surprise, she smiled at him and waggled a finger at him chidingly. (_Because you're a few hundred years too early to have any chance at all with me, dear boy.) _She ruffled Craig's hair playfully. (_And I've already got this lovely man. Does such a good job at being a Chosen of a goddess.)_

"What?" Tsubasa arched an eyebrow. "A goddess?"

"Kind of." Craig ducked away from the woman's ministrations, blushing and shooting her an exasperated look as she giggled. "Apira here is a goddess, but isn't exactly at full power. See, my friends and I were Chosen by various deities on our home world as their champions and avatars to counteract this great darkness that was coming. Part of our task is to track down several sealed gods that were stolen from their resting place. Apira was their guardian goddess, but..."

He scowled darkly at the memory. "One of the Chosen decided to be a prick and was the one who stole the sealed deities. In the process, he hooked up with whatever this great darkness was and attacked Apira before I met her. He stole most of her power and gave her that scar...he was the one we were all fighting when he decided to be a sore loser and rip holes in dimensions." His fist clenched. "Now we're back to square one and I have to find my friends before he does..."

"Oh..man, that's harsh." Tsubasa paused for a moment and then slapped his fist into his palm. "But I wouldn't worry! I mean, they all have gods and goddesses protecting them to, right? And if they chose you guys, you have to pretty darn tough and since this guy you're fighting was a sore loser, that means you were winning! So you'll find each other again and kick his ass, I'm sure!" He gave Craig a thumbs-up and grinned broadly as he saw the other man smile back. "That's the spirit!"

(_Bah. A goddess of harlots and tricksters will do us no good here.)_ Neo, obviously more recovered from his hangover than he had been a few moments ago, joined the group with a scowl on his face.

Craig glanced between the two Spirits. "You two know each other?"

(_Yes.)_ Apira pursed her lips, a hand on her hip. _(Neo's card mentions how he travels between dimensions, right? Well, before I met you, but after I was attacked, I went looking for someone to help me regain my lost power. But this guy...)_ She gestured at Neo with her staff, the five rings on the top jangling with the motion. _(wanted to meet same person and we wound up competing for the right.)_

_(A challenge I won fairly. Or would have, had you not tossed aside your clothing!) _Neo groused at her.

_(The challenge was to reach the goal by any means we had necessary and I did!)_ She folded her arms under her chest. (_Not my fault you got trampled by the horde of hormonally-driven men. You should have gotten out of the way!) _

_(You proclaim yourself a goddess, yet use tactics like that...disgraceful!)_

(_This coming from a knight who landed his partner here because he was drunk.) _

_(I may have erred in my control the spell, but I defended my honor as a good knight should! Yet you still claim divinity, with your personality. If you area goddess, it is of slatterns and bar wenches!) _Neo snapped, jabbing a finger at her.

_(Hey!_) Apira gripped her staff tightly. _(I am a goddess of summons! And I spent a lot of centuries earning that title and I deserve to be addressed as such!) _

Neo snorted in disbelief. _(Since you seem to summon nothing but men driven by their baser instincts, I suppose if you summon enough of them and enough of them say you are a goddess, then on some level it must be true. But truth from the mouth of fools is still foolish.)_

(_That's it! Now I remember why I was so happy I beat you! That holier-than-thou crap is a real good way to piss off a goddess, blondie!) _Apira tackled the knight, the two becoming a roiling, cartoonish cloud of dust.

_(Ha! I would only fear your ability to smite where your talents not centered on the bedroom!) _

The two duelists gained sweatdrops as they watched their respective partners brawl, Craig pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation. "Somehow, I should have expected this. Weird crap like this always seems to come my way."

"I hear you..." Tsubasa didn't blink as a flash of magic briefly illuminated the cloud. "Wow, for a knight, he fights dirty."

"For a goddess, she fights just as dirty."

They stared at the cloud for a moment more, then Craig reached into a coat and produced something. "Pocket checkers?"

"I'd love to."

TTTTTTT

_Some time later..._

The two duelists looked up from their game as they saw the dust cloud disperse, their respective partners disheveled and looking rather worn out.

_(I did not know I had bones there...)_ Neo groaned, his body twitching spasmodically. _(Or that they could hurt so much...)_

Apira smiled triumphantly, but then winced herself and gingerly touched the top of her head_. (You better not have damaged the roots of my hair. Do you know how hard it is get a decent shampoo?) _

Craig stretched and stood up, pocketing the portable checkers set. "It's about time you two stopped fighting.

"Could have gone a little longer..." Tsubasa groused. "I was just about to win."

"Your one remaining piece must have had one heck of plan."

"It definitely was and it would have made your kings weep in terror at its coming!"

"Yeah, all six of them would have trembling in their non-existent boots." The brown-haired man rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. "So do we have a way out of here yet or are we going to have start remodeling?"

"Well, it wouldn't be a bad idea..." The Shadowchaser rubbed his chin thoughtfully, peering at some of the detailing on the stonework. "A little paint would really add some color and spruce the place up...have to avoid using too much, though. Then we'll wind up with a gaudy place and it'll be in a pain in the butt to remove."

He didn't notice Craig burying his face in a palm behind him.

Apira straightened her clothing and smoothed her hair back as she spoke. (_I believe that between Neo and I, we could open the portals that brought us here, provided enough energy.) _

"Which you two exhausted in your little brawl." Craig pointed out and then smirked. "How unbecoming of a goddess. No wonder you lost your deity-hood. But I suppose that means we can get it back by having you becoming the goddess of bar brawling." He chuckled at the thought. " 'Oh Apira, grant me another beer bottle so that I may smash my enemy's head in...and get a good drink!'"

Tsubasa and Neo snickered as the goddess clonked him over the head with her staff and the Shadowchaser turned to his partner. "Is what she's saying true? Can we get home like that?"

_(Yes. Despite the lady and mine's...exchange...)_ Neo adjusted himself. _(We can open the portals, but not through our own power. This place is a kind of prison or so we've guessed. So anything we try to do will be negated by our surroundings.)_

_(Which is why we need to draw energy from an outside source-something that is not directly related to us.) _Apira gestured to the two humans with her staff. _(So if the two of you duel, the conflict will generate energy to get us home.)_

"Really...?" Craig looked thoughtful. "I guess that makes sense-you've regained some of your power by defeating other spirits and such in duels."

"Yeah, and in my home, they say that the Momentum we use can be affected by powerful duels and Jaden Yuki's autobiography mentioned something about opening a portal to another world by dueling somehow..." Tsubasa shrugged. "I kinda skimmed the thing, to be honest. Guy's a awesome duelist, not so hot a writer."

He blinked as Craig started to chuckle. "What's so funny?"

"Hearing Jaden being talked about as a real person and not as a bad anime character..." The other duelist just continued to chuckle as he walked to the far side of the chamber, waving the comment he had just made away. "Never mind. Doesn't mean anything to you."

Spinning on his heel, it was easy to see the big grin on his face. "Anyway, they said we have to duel...so let's do it!"

"No argument there!" Tsubasa grinned in return and jumped back so that there was enough space between the duelists. Grabbing his duel disk from where it lay, he slid it onto his wrist and slammed the deck home. Then he blinked as a thought crossed his mind. "Hey...where's yours?"

"Just a second..." Craig held out his left arm and light flashed around it. When it faded, there was a duel disk strapped to his wrist. It was silver in coloration, with the monster spots violet emblazoned with a violet six-pointed star, while the life point counter and deck holder were a soft blue color. His deck was already in place. "There are some perks to being a chosen of a goddess."

"So I see." Tsubasa smiled as Apira appeared alongside her chosen. He lifted an eyebrow with a smirk. "I imagine there are some perks better than others. A goddess' affections and all that?" A laugh escaped him as Craig blushes and turned his head shyly. The goddess herself merely wriggled her eyebrows and gave Craig a hug that pressed his face into her chest before vanishing in a small stream of light into his deck.

(_Hmmph...such unbecoming behavior...)_ Neo crossed his arms and scowled. (_A deity of lust and perversion...hardly anything worth worshiping.)_

"Oh, stuff it. Aren't knights suppose to be chivalrous in defeat, too?"

_(It was not a fair fight.)_

"Yeah, huh, whatever you say." Tsubasa held up his duel disk and pointed at his deck. "You want a chance to beat her, partner, get in the deck and we'll see how the duel goes."

(_Very well.)_ Neo inclined his head and vanished into the deck in a beam of light.

"Now that's taken care of..." The Shadowchaser flipped a switch and his duel disk slid into active mode, lighting up. "Let's see if you can stand up to a Shadowchaser!" (TLP: 8000)

"Fine with me!" Craig's disk activated, a magical glow suffusing the device briefly. "As the Chosen of Apira, I accept your challenge and will meet you with full force!" (CLP: 8000)

"Bring it on! I'll go first!" Tsubasa snapped off a sixth card and added to his hand, before grabbing a different one and slapping it down. "I'll start by summoning my Marauding Captain and his effect activates will let me bring out my Blackwing- Shura the Blue Flame!" A lean warrior strode out onto his field, wielding a longsword in one hand and a short sword in the other. He crossed both weapons and bellowed a battle cry, the spot alongside him lighting up. A blue flame erupted there and then quickly faded away, leaving a lanky bird-man ins place. (1200/700) (1800/1200)

"Then I'll set two cards face-down and call it a turn." The Shadowchaser watched as the two cards appeared behind his two monsters.

"Draw!" Craig yanked the card free, slipping it amongst his hand of five. (_A Marauding Captain and a Blackwing...? Blackwings already spam special summon and none are warriors, so including that Captain makes no sense...what is he up to?) _

He glanced down at his hand and smirked slightly. "I'm not sure what your deck is, but that won't stop me from coming straight at you! I activate the spell card Frontline Base!" The card shimmered into existence in front of him and immediately started glowing. "And it's effect lets me summon a Union Monster from my hand. So here comes my Y-Dragon Head!" A metallic red dragon appeared in front of him, sleek and angular. (1500/1600)

"And to continue my attack force, I'll summon out my A- Alpha Unite" The new monster was a humanoid android, bulky and heavy looking. Gears and servomotors whirred as it struck a pose, light gleaming off its white surface. (1600/1500)

"Huh, really?" Tsubasa grinned lightly. "Don't tell me they actually went and made one of those monsters for every single letter of the alphabet."

"Naw, just about nine more or so. I've only got two playsets in this deck, though." Craig pointed at his new monster. "And this one is a fun choice. Because now I select one union monster in my deck..." A card was slid out of his deck and grabbed it, though he kept it separate from his hand. "And send it to the graveyard, meaning my Alpha Unite takes on the name of that monster!"

The chosen card was slid into the graveyard and Alpha Unite began to glow, whirring and shifting as it transformed. When it was done, it resembled nothing more with a sleek sports card. With machine guns mounted on the spoiler. "Since it's taken on the name of my C-Arbine Racer, I can now banish my two machines to fuse them together! Let's go!"

Energy crackled around the two machines as they broke apart into their individual pieces. The pieces were pulled together in a swirling maelstrom, linking and snapping together in seemingly impossible ways. Then with a blinding flash of light, it was over. "Say hello to my CY-Dragon Racer!" (2100/1600)

"Oooo..." Tsubasa stared at the new monster. It held the basic frame of the C-Arbine Racer, but now had the Y-Dragon Head's wings on its sides, the tail for a new spoiler and the head as the new front end, giving it an appearance of a vehicle that travel on both land and air equally well. "Dude, that's awesome!"

"I know, right? And now for his special ability!" The other duelist slid a card from his hand into his grave. "Discard a card..." The eyes on the head of the dragon lit up like headlights, focusing on Marauding Captain, who dropped his blades and stared into them dumbly. "And now his attack drop to zero!" (1200-0)

"Aw, man, seriously? Deer-in-the-headlights?" Tsubasa grimaced and then blinked as Craig drew two more cards. "That must come from your discarded card's effect. Right?"

"Yep. It's Alphabet Soupercharger and when discarded for the effect of an Gestalt Fusion, I draw twice." Craig pointed at Marauding Captain. "But that will come into play later! My Dragon Racer attacks your monster! _Laser Rain!_"

The car's motor revved and then it peeled out, launching itself into the air. Looping around the playing field, the machine guns swiveled out from under the wings before unleashing a endless barrage of rapid-fire laser blasts. "Trap cards open!"

Tsubasa grinned as his Shura took flight, interposing itself between the oncoming blasts and Marauding Captain. "My first one is Shift and that redirects your attack towards Shura! And the other one is Skill Successor, which gives my Blackwing four hundred more points! So now he counterattacks with _Blue Flame Claws!" _Shura folded his wings around himself, the laser blasts harmlessly splashing against them as the fusion monster closed in. Once it got close enough, he flares his wings and streaks of blue fire flashed as the two monsters collided. Seconds later, an explosion rippled through the machine and it blew apart. (CLP: 7900)

"Damn..." Craig shielded himself as the debris from his monster rained down on his field. "I wasn't expecting a trap combo like that, but broke about even with that move..." He sighed as he saw a small pillar of blue flames erupt alongside Shura. "And that is what, now?"

"When Shura trashes an monster by battling, I can summon a Blackwing with less than fifteen hundred attack from my deck, though it's effect is negated." The pillar of flames resolved into a squat bird-man with red plumage and an overcoat kneeling, his wings folded around him. "Vayu the Emblem of Honor is my choice!" (800/0)

"I recognize that one...he's a Tuner, but can't be used for a Synchro Summon while on the field. Your Shura gets around that." Craig grinned as he dusted the last of the ashes off of himself. "That's a pretty good combo. Now you get at least two Synchro Summons next turn and if I get off a surprise summon, Skill Successor gives you an edge with attack points. You're not as dumb as you look, Shadowchaser."

"That must mean I'm a genius, because I look pretty darn sharp!" Tsubasa struck a pose and ran a hand through his hair, spiking it up even more. "Or are you as blind as bat even with those glasses, four-eyes?"

"Pssht. If I'm blind, it's because your outfit is so horrible in taste." Craig said bemusedly and then plugged a card into his disk. "To continue with my move, I'm activating Last Testament. Since a monster on my field was destroyed, I select one that's a lower level, but shares its type and attribute , in my deck and Special Summon it. X-Head Cannon will do, in defense mode." A flash of light heralded the arrival of the yellow-blue machine, its shoulder cannons warming up. (1800/1500) "Then I'll set this card face-down and call it a turn."

"Draw!" Tsubasa snapped the card free and immediately slid it and another card into his disk. "I activate the continuous magic card Black Whirlwind and equip my Marauding Captain with Synchro Boost! This raises his attack by five hundred and jumps his level up by one, too!" The Captain glowed slightly as the equip activated. "But that attack boost is a moot point, since I'm opening up the Overlay Network!"

"Overlay Network? Oh crap, I've heard about these..." Craig stared as a spiral of energy opened up on Tsubasa's field, Shura the Blue Flame and Marauding Captain become spheres of light that were pulled into it. "Two monsters of the same level can become batteries for an new type of monster, right?"

"That about sums it up! I overlay my two monsters in order to bring out Evigishiki Merrowgeist!" What emerged from the portal was a merwoman, her scales colored red and green. Blue fins flapped almost like wings as she twirled the nasty-looking spear she held. Two orbs that Craig surmised where the two monsters that Tsubasa had overlain orbited her. (2100/1600)

"But the fun doesn't stop there! Since I control a Blackwing monster, I can Normal Summon Elphin the Raven without a tribute!" True to his name, Elphin was a tall, lanky birdman with dark feathered wings and headdress. (2200/1200)

"And since a Blackwing was Normal Summoned, my spell card activates its effect." The continuous magic card began to glow. "I can add a Blackwing who has less than the summoned monster's attack points to my hand, so I choose my Zephyros the Elite!" Adding the card to his hand, Tsubasa pointed as his two Blackwings. "Time to give my monsters a tune-up!

Elphin broke apart into seven glowing stars that began to circle Vayu, forming glowing rings that hid the small Tuner from view. "_The winds of battle blow and you are the vanguard! Reveal the keystone to the enemy's defeat! Synchro Summon! Blackwing Armor Master!_" Black wings swirled around the new monster, which faded away to reveal a tall armored winged humanoid, it's hawk-like face having a single eye. (2500/1500)

"That was a great speech!" Craig grinned, waving an arm excitedly. "And your monsters look awesome! About sometime someone got as passionate about this stuff I as do!"

"Preaching to the choir, specs!" The Shadowchaser pumped his fist in the air. "Now my Merrowgeist will attack your X-Head Cannon with _Cursed Spear!_" The monster twirled her weapon, dark water being pulled into its wake as she darted forwards. Metal groaned as the weapon pierced right through the machine monster's head, causing it to spark and shudder before shattering into pixels. "And now, since she defeated your monster, I can detach an Overlay Unit to send that monster to the bottom of your deck instead of your graveyard!"

"Crud..." Craig watched as one of the lights around Merrowgeist faded, sliding the destroyed monster back into the appropriate spot. Then he blinked as a black blur appeared in front of him, resolving into Blackwing Armor Master. "Crap!"

"_Armor Fist!" _Tsubasa watched as the Synchro monster delivered a powerful slash to the other duelist, shoving him back a foot. "Alright, I'll end my turn! Let's see what you got!" (CLP: 5400)

"And my draw!" Craig drew and slapped the card down. "I summon B-Mammoth Wave-Rider!" His new monster was indeed a massive mechanical mammoth, trumpeting as it stomped out onto the playing field. (1900/1200) "And then I'll reveal my face-down Rollout! This trap selects a Union Monster in my graveyard and equips it an appropriate monster in play! But I'll simply de-union my C-Arbine Racer from my mammoth as soon as I can!"

The mammoth glowed and it briefly gained armor before the armor flew off and re-assembled into a gleaming red version of the white racecar from earlier. "Here we go again- fusion!" The two monsters broke apart into their respective pieces, swirling and whirling together. What resulted was a humanoid version of the mammoth, the rear legs of the car forming boots, the spoiler becoming a backpack with the turrets on top, the front wheels and chassis become body armor and the windshield becoming an outrageously large visor for the fusion's head. "Meet BC-Wave-Racer Mammoth!" (2400/1800)

His disk beeped and whirred, spitting a card out of his graveyard. "At this time, a secondary effect of Alphabet Soupercharger activates. When I fusion summon one of the Gestalt Fusion monsters, I can add it to my hand from my graveyard." He held up the magic card and grinned. "So of course, I'll discard to activate my Wave-Racer Mammoth's effect!"

"Oh this can't be good..." Tsubsasa watched as the card was discarded and the fusion monster's turrets began to spin, the monster using its boots to peel out and race backwards. His Blackwing Armor Master was forced to shield itself with its wings laser fire was poured into it. "What is it doing!?"

"My fusion is negating the effect of your monster!" The Armor Master staggered, his body and wings perforated with holes from the attack. Craig drew two more cards per his spell card's effect and then pointed across the field. "Now Wave-Racer Mammoth attacks your Merrogeist! _Revved-up Slugger!"_

With the screech of tires on stone and the smell of burning rubber, the fusion reversed its course and sped across the field towards the enemy. Winding up a fist, it delivered a powerful haymaker to the Xyz monster's chin, throwing her up into the air where she shattered into digital dust. (TLP: 7700)

"And my turn's not stopping there!" Craig flipped around one of the cards he had just drawn. "I activate Dimensional Slip! Now by banishing a Gestalt Fusion monster, I can special summon any two Gestalt Monsters I have in my banished pile!" His fusion rippled like a mirage before suddenly winking out of sight. Then a portal opened up on his field and spat out his A-Alpha Unite and Y-Dragon Head. "And now I'll use the effect of Frontline Base to bring out my Z-Metal Tank!" His new monster was a flat, dual-traded tank with the Eye of Horus on the front. (1500/1600)

"And one more time! Fusion!" The three monsters shattered apart into their pieces, which flew together in a maelstrom. The Y-Dragon Head's neck retracted and folded down onto its belly while the wings and detached themselves. A second later, the treads detached themselves from Z-Metal tank and the body/head of the Y-Dragon Head slid over the smaller machine's torso. Alpha Unite's arms attached to this, gaining in size as the metal wings fitted themselves over the limbs. The treads split horizontally, unfolding at the base to form rudimentary feet. The Alpha Unite legs folded up and plugged into these lower legs before welding to the torso. Finally, Alpha Unite's head attached to the neck and glowed, doubling in size and gaining a 'W' shaped crest on its forehead. Grabbing the drill-spear the Y-Dragon Head tail had become, the combination machine struck a pose. "AYZ- Alpha Metal Dragoon!" (2800/2700)

"...I could have sworn I heard 'Go Go Power Rangers' playing there for a second..." Tsubasa whistled at the impressive fusion. "So what's this one do?"

"Well..." Craig watched as his Alphabet Soupercharger slid out his graveyard. "Unlike the others, this one has a bit of a restriction its effects. First, it has to be the only monster I control and, I cannot summon anything else after I use this effect. But on the flip side...I discard cards from my hand to discard cards from yours, but only up to three. Since you only have two..." Alphabet Soupercharger and another card from his hand were slid into his graveyard.

The Shadowchaser grimaced as two little targeting sights appeared on his hand cards, which were summarily gained two neat little holes in them and he tossed them into the graveyard in annoyance. "Dammit, that's a powerful monster."

"Yeah, well, these kinds of fusions consume a lot of resources, so it evens out." Craig drew two more cards, giving him a total of four. "I'll set one card face-down and activate the continuous magic card Machina Armored Unit." The continuous magic card appeared alongside his Frontline Base. "End of turn!"

Tsubasa drew carefully. (_This guy...it's the fifth turn already, but he recovered from running into my combo on the first turn and despite everything he's committed to the field, he's got three cards in his hand. He manages his resources so carefully...taking everything into account)_ He couldn't help but grin and his fist clenched in excitement. (_He's strong!)_

The phantasmal image of Neo appeared over the youth's shoulder. (_This opponent is a Chosen of a goddess, squire. Given that she is no average goddess...)_

"...then he's no average duelist." Tsubasa finished for him, fist clenching in excitement. "But that's just fine!"

(_Really?) _The magical knight looked surprised. _(It's quite possible that he is stronger than you, Tsubasa...yet this makes you excited?)_

"Of course!" Tsubasa gave the spirit a look that suggested that Neo was crazy. "What's the fun in fighting someone who's average? Or weaker than I am? "

"Hey, is something the matter over there?" Craig's voice pulled the two out of their conversation and Neo faded back out of sight. The Chosen lifted an eyebrow and folded his arms over his chest. "Or do the Shadowchasers get cold feet so easily?"

"Not even close! We make a living of tackling the nastiest things our world has to offer, so a hunk of tin like your fusion over there doesn't make me bat an eye!" Tsubasa grinned and thrust out a hand. "I activate the effect of my monster!"

"What..? You can't- your Armor Master's effect is still negated!"

"But the monster you made me discard last turn is just fine! By returning a card I control to my hand-" The Black Whirlwind card vanished. "I can take four hundred points of damage and special summon this guy from my graveyard once per duel!" With a flutter of black feathers, a bird-man appeared, his mas resembling a hummingbird's head. "Zephyeros the Elite!" (1600/1000) (TLP: 7300)

The Black Whirlwind card reappeared in play. "And now I'll Normal Summon my Kalut the Moon Shadow!" A small, squat bird-thing appeared in front of him. (1400/1000) "And since my Whirlwind is in play, I can add the slightly weaker but all the more useful Gale the Whirlwind to my and since I have a Blackwing in play, special summon him!" This time, the monster was had azure feathers with a aquamarine plumage. (1300/400)

"Damn...now you're going to use his effect to halve my fusion's attack points..." Craig watched his words prove prophetic, his massive Dragoon being pelted and dented by a flurry of feathers from the three Blackwings. (2800/2700-1400/1350)

"I could tune my monsters together, but I've got something better in mind! I open the Overlay Network!" Kalut and Gale were pulled into the vortex, which in turn allowed a great blue/green winged-serpent to fly free of it. "This is Levair the Sea Dragon!" (1800/1600)

"And I can detach an Overlay Unit on him to summon any monster I want from either of our banished piles so long as its level four or lower!" As one of the circling lights around the Xyz monster faded, a portal swirled into existence and out came Craig's A-Alpha Unite. "And now the Overlay Network opens again!"

Craig watched as Zephyros and his machine were pulled into the vortex. "You don't do anything half-heated, do you? Every move always leads to something bigger." What lumbered out of the vortex as a human-shaped golem that was easily twice as wide and half again as tall as the two duelists. "Your strategy is all weird, but it's strong..."

"Funny you should say that. This is Gem-Knight Pearl and while he doesn't have any effect, he comes with a mountain's worth of attack points in exchange." (2600/1900) Tsubasa pointed a fist at Craig's machine. "Blackwing Armor Master may not have an effect either, at this point, but he can still junk that thing! _Armor Fist!" _

The Synchro Monster pulled itself together, rushing forwards and slashing the giant Dragoon down the center. Both halves began to separate before it shattered and pelted its owner with pixels. Craig shielded himself from the barrage with an arm, using the other to point at his Machina Armored Unit card. "Since you destroyed a monster on my field and sent it to the graveyard, I can summon a machine with less attack and the same attribute!" With a whir and a small flash of light, his X-Head Cannon reappeared. (CLP: 4300)

"That's fine, because my Levair is going to wreck that one, too! _Tidal Spiral!_" The Sea Dragon roared before swooping into the air and unleashing a jet of water. It swirled around the machine monster, tightening around it like a vise...and then Tsubasa's eyes widened as he saw the machine vanish right before the attack could crush it. He still heard something shatter and pixels came out of the water. "What...just happened?"

"I activated my Cross Shift card." Craig pointed to the now face-up quick-play card on his field. "With it, I can return a level four or lower monster to my hand and Special Summon another one in its place. So I saved my X-Head Cannon by swapping it out with my Ojama Blue in defense mode. And of course, when that goes to the graveyard through battle, I get two 'Ojama' cards from my deck." His disk whirred and spat out two cards, which he held up. "Ojamagic and Ojama Delta Hurricane should do it."

"XYZ...and now Ojama?" Tsubasa cocked his head. "You the Manjoume Jun of your world or something?"

"Manjoume...Jun?" Craig looked confused for a moment and then brightened. "Oh, you mean Chazz Princeton. Naw, that's hardly the case." He shrugged. "I just like the strategy. Not often many decks run two strategies together."

Tsubasa laughed. "Oh, I hear you...and by the way...Gem Knight Pearl attacks you directly!" The golem thundered forwards, slamming a powerful fist into the other duelist and sending Craig reeling back a few steps.

"Ow..." The Chosen moved back to his spot, wincing. "That thing packs a wallop..." (CLP: 1700)

"It's made of a precious stone, what did you expect? A tap on the head or something?" Tsubasa chuckled and

raised his fist in front of him. "You're looking a little worn out there, specs. What's the matter, can't you handle my awesome dueling prowess?"

"Hardly." Craig smirked, a sudden intensity around his person. "This fight is just getting started. It's my turn, draw!" Snapping the card free, he flipped it around. "I activate Monster Reincarnation! By discarding a card from my hand, I can add one monster from my graveyard to my hand! I discard Ojamagic to add C-Arbine Racer to my hand!"

He discard his chosen card and picked up the one his graveyard slid out. "And since Ojamagic went to my graveyard, I can add the three Ojama Brothers to my hand!" He held up the three monsters as his deck slid them out and then grabbed another card from his hand. "Go Polymerization! This fuses my three brothers into Ojama King!" Wearing nothing but a towel cape and a speedo and a dainty crown atop his head, the massive white Ojama bonded onto the field. _'The King has arrived!' _(O/3000)

"And that means..." Tsubasa grimaced as Ojama King pulled out a giant rubber stamp and stamped it down on the two remaining monsters spots on his field, leaving them with a giant 'DENIED!' stamp on them. "Well, that Free Willy cousin is just a big wall of blubber!"

"Oh come on." Craig waggled a finger at the other duelist. "You just asked if I was Chazz Princeton and didn't think I wouldn't have a way to make my King more useful?" He plugged a card into his disk. "Shield Attack swaps the attack and defense points of the equipped monster! And now he's going to go royal all over your Armor Master! _Ojama Belly Flop!" _(0/3000-3000/0)

The fusion grinned and flexed his monsters, sprinting across the field and leaping into the air so high that it defied physics. _'The King is about to land! Make way!_' Armor Master only had time to glance up as the shadow fell across him and then he was squashed beneath King's massive bulk. (TLP: 700)

"Then, I'll just set one card face-down and end my turn." Craig nodded as the card appeared behind his King.

"Draw!" Tsubasa pulled the card off of his deck and after glancing at it, set it in the one open monster spot he had remaining. "I'll set this and switch my other two monsters to defense mode." Levair curled up on itself while the Gem-Knight knelt and crossed its arms over its chest. "Your move."

Craig drew, but didn't bother to glance at the card. "Ojama King! Why don't you go and squash that set monster for me! I could use a fresh hand!"

The Shadowchaser watched as his set monster was summarily crushed beneath the fat monster. "How'd you know that was Morphing Jar?" He drew five new cards, per the effect of the monster.

Craig discarded what hand cards he had and then drew five as well. "Educated guess. You wouldn't have bothered to set it unless it could have benefited you. You aren't the type to try and bluff and your two monsters were stronger than anything I could bring out on short notice, since my fusions can't be Special Summoned." Glancing at his new hand, he slid another card into his disk. "This'll go face-down and I'll call it good."

'Bout time." Tsubasa drew. "Alright, since we seem to be going for secondary strategies this turn, I'll have you meet mine! I activate the field magic card Geartown!" Around the duelists, the cavern warped and twisted to become a massive city comprised of mechanical buildings and heavy, giant gears spinning and grinding against one another. "But it's not staying around for long, because I'm using Double Cyclone! Now I can trash a magic or trap card on both of our fields!"

Craig's Shield Attack shuddered and exploded violently as Geartown came tumbling down, the buildings collapsing in on themselves and and the gears toppling over. Tsubasa grinned as the refuse began to pile behind him, rumbling and shifting like it was alive. "And when Geartown is sent to the graveyard, I can summon an Ancient Gear monster from my deck or hand! So meet my Ancient Gear Gadjiltron Dragon!" A metallic roar sounded as the pile transformed into a dragon's shape, stomping forwards as nuts and bolts fell from it with every motion. (3000/2000)

"This game is mine! Since your King is attack mode, all he is now is a walking lump zero attack points! And-" Then he stared as a trio of blue-robed priests appeared on Craig's field. "And that is?"

"Waboku. So now you can't hurt me or my monsters this turn." The other duelists smiled a bit. "Most people would run Threatening Roar over this card, but to be honest, I think there's not much difference between it and this card, so I prefer the classic stuff."

"Tch...classic or not, it's a pain in the neck." The Shadowchaser groused and set a card. "I end my turn."

"And it's my move." Craig drew and nodded to himself. "I reveal one of my set cards- Dimensional Regression! All monsters in our banished piles are returned to our decks." He slid the small stack of cards atop his deck and let the auto-shuffler do its job. "And then, I'll activate Different Dimension Hanger! Now I banish three machine Union monsters from my deck and when I summon a monster mentioned in their texts, they're summoned!" He held up three cards and slid them into the proper slot.

With the sound of metal wings, a mechanical beetle appeared on his field, it's rear legs replaced by wheels. "Beetron-1 Beetletop is my monster of choice this turn and now my Hanger produces his favorite partners, Beetron-2 Bettleturbo and Beetron-3 Spider Base!" Alongside his new machine came a machine resembling a stag beetle and thing that might have been a vague resemblance to a spider, given that it was merely two round sections atop each other with four legs a piece.

Then all three monsters broke apart into pieces and began to connect. "And by returning all three to my deck, I can summon out their combined form of Assault Cannon Beetle!" The final combination looked roughly like a cannon, though the odd shape and size of its pieces made it look rather fragile. (2400/2800)

The Chosen held up a magic card. "Ojamandala brings the Ojama brothers from my graveyard to the field for the cost of one thousand life points!" There were three flashes of light and the yellow, green and black creatures were back on the field. (0/1000) '_Hello, we're the Ojama Brothers!' _(CLP: 700)

"Yes you are, but you're not staying around for long-I can tribute monsters to my Assault Cannon Beetle to deal my opponent eight hundred points of damage! _Cannon Barrage!_" The three Ojamas yelped as they became spheres of light that were loaded into the cannon. The machine braced itself and then fire three powerful shots in rapid succession.

Tsubasa braced himself as the three shots impacted hard, shoving him back several feet and leaving him smoking. "When those little dudes hit like this, I don't get why anyone still makes fun of them..." (TLP: 4400)

"Here's some more food for thought- keep track of your monster's battle positions! Assault Cannon Beetle attacks your Gem-Knight Pearl!" The Cannon fired another round, the blast simply shattering the Xyz monster like it was glass. "And then I'll reveal my other trap card! Alt. Mode Transformation!"

Assault Cannon Beetle became to shudder and then transform, its pieces ratcheting and clanking into a new formation that left with the nasty-looking stag beetle pincers on the front. "This card lets me tribute Assault Cannon Beetle and bring out Combat Scissors Beetle instead!" (3600/1800)

"So now he goes to town on your Ancient Gear monster! _Scissors Rending!" _The new monster surged forwards, the massive pincers closing around the scrap machine and shearing it into two neat pieces that promptly exploded. "And when he destroys a monster, you take one thousand damage!"

The Shadowchaser duelist cried out as the pincers slashed across his chest diagonally, leaving him winded. "God dammit, that _hurt!_" (TLP: 2600)

"Giant scissors will do that to you." Craig glanced at his hand and then pointed at his Ojama King. "And taking my own advice, he'll go to defense mode!" The giant Ojama flopped on his butt, shaking the entire room for a moment. '_The King is going to sit this one out!' _"One card face-down ends my turn!"

"My move!" Tsubasa drew and then flipped around another card. "Black Wing Strafe lets me ditch a Blackwing from my hand and then I can send any defense mode monster on your field to the graveyard! So your King is dethroned!"

Black feathers filled the air around him and then shot towards the fusion monster like they were arrows, pelting and sticking all over him. The Ojama flailed about, his stubby arms failing to anything effective. '_The King can't go out like this!'_ Then he was gone, leaving only a pile of feathers to collapse to the ground.

"Now I banish Vayu and Armor Master in my graveyard to Special Summon Blackwing- Silverwing the Ascendant!" Feathers swirled in front of him, scattering to reveal a tall bird-man in armor that was crafted to resemble feathers, a _nodachi_in his hands. "Of course, thanks to Vayu, he has no special ability, but that's just fine with me!" (2800/2000)

He held up the card he had just discarded. "By banishing Boreas the Sharp, I can make one of my Blackwings immune to battle destruction during this turn and I receive no battle damage. But now when my Silverwing battles your monster, it's destroyed! Go! _Splitting Strike!"_ The Synchro Monster nodded and flashed across the field, suddenly appearing behind Craig's massive fusion. For a moment, nothing happened...and then the fusion creaked, crumbling into a pile neatly sliced-apart pieces. "Then I'll set two cards face-down and call it a turn!"

Craig drew, grinning widely. "This duel is awesome! I haven't fun like this in a long time!" He snapped his fingers and his set card flipped up. "Now my Back-Up Soldier trap lets me add the three Ojama Brothers to my hand since they're all normal monsters with less than fifteen hundred attack and I have more than five monsters in my graveyard." His graveyard whirred and spat out the desired cards.

Adding them to his hand, he flipped around a spell card. "Magical Mallet will shuffle the other five cards in my hand into my deck and then I can draw the same amount!" He did so swiftly, his grin not fading as he saw what his card had given him. "Perfect! I'll summon X-Head Cannon once more!" The yellow and blue machine reappeared for the third time in this duel.

Different Dimension Hanger began to glow and then a portal opened, letting Z-Metal Tank trundle its way out on to the playing field. "Now the effect of Frontline Base brings out my Y-Dragon Head!" The red dragon released a roar as it appeared alongside the other two. "Fusion!"

Tsubasa gulped as the three machines combined, becoming the massive, heavily armed hovercraft that Seto Kaiba and Manjoume Jun had made so famous. "I don't suppose that thing has a 'low power' setting?"

"'Fraid not." Craig grabbed his Alphabet Soupercharger as it slid from his graveyard and then promptly slid it back into it. "First up, I'll blast your Silverwing! _Hyper Destruction!" _The hovercraft opened fire, hammering the synchro with a heavy barrage of lasers that reduced it to pixels in a second.

Drawing two more cards, he slid another swiftly into his graveyard. _"Hyper Destruction!"_ Levair cried out as the onslaught pierced through its hide and shattered it. "Direct Attack! _Laser Barrage!" _The machine's weapons wined, unleashing a volley of lasers towards the Shadowchaser. But the moment before they hit, there was a series of loud 'Kurrriiii!' and the explosions roiled in front of the duelist, covering his field in his smoke. "Oh come on! Kuriboh's not even a Blackwing or machine!"

"No, but he's level one, so he fits in with my One for One card and I like him, so nyyeh!" Tsubasa stuck out his tongue as the smoke cleared to reveal him unharmed.

Craig stuck his tongue out right back. "Alright, you hodgepodge fashion disaster, you live for this round. But it's not going to last!" He slid a card into his disk, watching it appear face-down before him. "And if you think you're going to be clever and hit me some kind of effect damage for the win, my Emergency Provisions will send my set card, Different Dimension Hanger and Frontline Base to the graveyard to give me three thousand life points!"

All three of the cards shattered and a soft green light surrounded him. (CLP: 3700) "That's much, much better." He nodded and set a card, the brown-backed hologram flashing into existence behind his cannon. "Your move."

"I draw!" Tsubasa did so and slid the card into his disk. "Akashic Record lets me draw two cards, but if I've used them in this duel, they are banished. So let's hope for something good, right?" He drew and flipped the cards around with a grin. "And that hope is fulfilled! Haven't seen these cards this duel yet!"

He tapped a button on his disk. "The trap card Xyz Reborn lets me revive an Xyz monster in my graveyard and give it this card as a Material!" Levair screeched as it returned to the playing field. "And then I'll ditch this new material to nab my Vayu from my banished pile!" A portal opened and spat out the squawking Tuner. "Then I'll use one of those cards I just from Akashic Record-Burial From A Different Dimension! This means I can move Armor Master back into my graveyard and your X-Head Cannon and Y-Dragon Head in to yours!"

"Mmph..." Craig frowned a bit, complying with the effect and pushing the two monsters into the graveyard slot. "Why wouldn't you just but both Vayu and Armor Master back to get another Synchro?"

"Because I want to do this instead! The trap Descending Lost Star revives my Armor Master in defense mode, but its loses a level and its defense becomes zero!" The Synchro appeared in a flash of light and kneeling, wings folded around him. "And now for the next card I got from my Record- Star Light, Star Bright!"

"Star Light, Star Brig-oh, you're joking!" Craig snickered slightly.

"What works, works! And my spell card works nicely! Since they share the same stat at zero, I can make one become the level of the other! So now Armor Master is level one and I open the Overlay Network!" The two monsters were pulled into the Network and out came...a slender white-skinned teenage girl, dressed in a violet shift and with long blue hair. She took in the sights around her and then giggled, producing a large stack of books and hiding behind them. (200/2100)

The Chosen duelist stared at the new monster, his jaw dropping slightly. "What...is that?"

"It's Shyneet Magician." Tsubasa replied proudly. "Now, I"ll set one card face-down and summon my Red Gadget in attack mode." A small red toy robot clanked out the field, a large gear on its back. (1300/1500 "And since I summoned him, I can added Yellow Gadget to my hand from my deck." Grabbing the card as it was slid from his deck, he twirled it with a smile. "Your move."

"Draw." Craig plucked the card free. "You just set up a shooting gallery! I-"

"Reveal Breakthrough Skill!" Tsubasa smirked smugly as the trap flipped up. "This lets me pick a monster on your field and during this turn, its effects are negated!"

To his surprise, even as the XYZ-Dragon Cannon was grayed out of any color it had to indicate the lack of it's effect, Craig didn't seem perturbed by the move. "You've got something up your sleeve, don't you?"

"Why, however could you guess?" Craig rolled his eyes playfully and gestured to his set card. "Reveal my second Alt Mode Transformation!" He grinned widely. "I love this part!"

"Now what are you-" Tsubasa got his answer as the gray coloring of the monster seemed to shatter, returning it to normal and then a rather familiar power rock chord began to play. "No way..."

_'Megazord Sequence has been initiated.'_The visor of X-Head Cannon flashed and the whole machine began to rumble. The treads extended outwards, transforming into legs and feet that began to pull the entire thing into an upright position while the top half straightened out in unison. Whirring, the cannons retracted into X-Head Cannon's shoulders. Y-Dragon Head's head and neck folded back up against the behemoth's chest as a chestplate. The whole machine seemed to bulk up, armor folding out of places that logically shouldn't have been able to hold anything at all.

Finally, the Y-Dragon Head's wings reappeared, transforming into a shield that it hefted in its left arm. A whistling sound was heard and the tail landed point-first in the ground in front of it, having transforming into a powerful looking sword. Grabbing the new weapon its free hand, energy cracked between it and its' owner. Lighting came down from nowhere, striking the fusion and arcing over its lines and pieces. '_Megazord Activated!' _(3600/2800)

Tsubasa stared at the monstrosity...and then pumped a fist in the air, jumping a bit. "That thing is freaking awesome! Power Rangers all the way! Where can I get one!?"

Craig laughed brightly, his eyes burning with the same enthusiasm that Tsubasa was exhibiting. "I think I've got a spare lurking around in my binder. But that's neither here nor there." He pointed at Levair. "XYZ- Assault Cannon Knight! _Power Sword!_"

Lightning flashed as the machine charged its blade, slashing it down across the Xyz monster. It was hurtled back from the blow, throwing well past Tsubasa and into the far wall where it exploded in a shower of sparks and pixels. Tsubasa reeled, shielding his face with an arm from the backlash. (TLP: 1000) "What an attack...!"

"Yeah, well, this guy's not my second strongest monster for nothing." Craig pulled a card from his hand and slid it into his disk. "And now I'm playing my rarest magic card- Card of Sanctity!" Golden coins began to rain from the sky, vanishing just before they struck the duelists. "Now we both draw until we hold six cards!"

Tsubasa drew five new cards while Craig drew four. The Chosen studied what he had drawn. (_With these cards, I can access the full power of my monster...) _

_(Yes.) _Apira's phantasmal image appeared behind him (_But that move helped him more than it did you, Craig. You have restored his hand.)_

"That doesn't bother me at all." Craig glanced at his goddess out of the corner of his eye. "This guy's pace has been unbreakable since the duel started. Every turn he's had, he's summoned powerful monsters and taken all of mine head on. It's almost all I can do keep up with him." He returned his gaze to the duel, an excited smile spreading across his face. "Why would I want to keep it so easy?"

The goddess smiled herself, shaking her head slightly. _(You'll never change. Always trying to see where the limit is.)_

"When you're having this much fun, there is no limit!" Tsubasa called out over to the two, grinning sharply. "Now are you two going to stop flirting and let specs over there continue his turn or what!?" He looked like a kid in a candy store. "I want to tear down that monster of yours!"

Apira smiled bemusedly at Tsubasa. (_Two of a kind..)_ Then she vanished from view as Craig shuffled his hand around, snapping the cards out into a fan shape dramatically. "You have fun trying all you want, Tsubasa, because my monster isn't going to fall so easily! End of turn!"

"Draw!" Tsubasa flipped around another card in his hand. "Monster Reincarnation! So I'll discard my Hillen the Tengu-wind to add Ancient Gear Gadjiltron Dragon back to my hand!"

Grabbing the card as it was slid out of his graveyard, he tucked it amongst the others before separating three from the others. "And since you so kindly gave me the last of my Gadgets, it'd be shame not to use him! So I'll play Polymerization!"

Two more small robots of green and yellow joined the red one and then all three leapt together, vanishing in a flash of light. Was descended was a large, human-sized blue robot with gears on its back and chest. It whirred and clanked as it crossed its arms in front of it defensively. "Great Gadget Blue!" (2000/2000)

"This triggers the effect of my Assault Cannon Knight!" The monster's cannons sprang out of its shoulders, leveling themselves at Tsubasa and his field. "I can immediately negate and destroy a summoned monster by discarding a card from my hand." He tossed a card into his graveyard. "Then I can nail you for two hundred damage times the destroyed monster's level! _Summon Punishment!"_

A roar filled the stone room as the fusion fired, the blast vaporizing Gadget Blue instantly. Tsubasa was forced to throw up his arms to keep the stone chips and bits from pelting his face. "It's got a powerful effect like that, too?" (TLP: 200)

"It does..and wait!" Craig blinked as he saw the score that flashed near Tsubasa as the other duelist made his way back to his spot. "Why didn't that finish you off!?"

"Heh...my fusion was only level four, so I only took eight hundred damage." The youth grinned, despite the dirt and grim on his face. "Looks like your victory has slipped by you yet again...and that means it's still up for grabs!"

Dusting himself off, Tsubasa grabbed one of the three remaining cards in his hand. "Monster Reborn returns Great Gadget Blue to me!" With a flash of light, the monster reappeared. "And one its effects states that if I want to sacrifice it for an Ancient Gear Monster, I can count it as two sacrifices! So I'll tribute it for my dragon!"

Craig watched as refuse and destroyed machine parts flew out of nowhere, forming into the junk pile of a dragon he had faced down earlier. "That thing was out-dated before it's parts were new! What's it going to do against my-" He paused he saw three gears, one each of yellow, red and green, all fly in out of nowhere and disappear into the dragon's body. There was series of ratcheting noises and the machine roared, fire getting out of its mouth as it stood taller, weapons popping out of locations all over its body. "Oh, what the hell!? That thing has more guns on it than a NRA convention!"

"Gadget Blue's name is also treated as all three of the other Gadgets. And my Gadjiltron Dragon just so happens to gain effects depending on which Gadget is offered as a tribute. Green gives him trample, Red inflicts four hundred extra damage when he inflicts some on you and when he trashes a monster, Yellow nails you for six hundred!" Tsubasa thrust finger across the way. "So now you're going to take your punishment like a man!"

"But your monster is-" Craig's eyes widened as the dragon's body began to glow, flames being generated somewhere in its body. "Skill Successor!"

"That's right- I can banish this guy to give my dragon eight hundred more attack points, meaning he out classes your monster by two hundred point! Ancient Gear Gadjiltron Dragon attacks your Assault Cannon Knight! _Gear Grind Fireball!" _Fire poured from the dragon's deck as it belted out a massive flaming gear. It punched a massive hole in the chest of Craig's fusion, the duelist instinctively throwing up his arms to shield himself from his toppling monster. Luckily, it burst into pixels moments before it hit.

Unluckily, he lowered his arms just in time for the Gadjiltron Dragon to open fire with everything it had. The sheer density of the gunfire sent him sliding back well over a yard before it let up. (CLP: 2500) "So _that's_ what that feels like..."

"You're tougher than you look, Chosen." Tsubasa slid a card into his disk with a smirk. "Last guy I hit with that got knocked off his feet."

"Heh." Craig rapped his skull with a knuckle. "Always knew I had a thick skull."

"You're out of big monsters and our decks are getting pretty low..." Tsubasa held up his disk so that Craig could see the deck slot. "Think you got anymore fight in you?"

"If you ask that question, I'd say you're more on the robes than I am! Draw!" Craig snapped the card around and grimaced at the sight of a Beetron monster. (_He's got a point, though...I've gone through nearly every big monster in my deck and my Gestalt fusions can't be Special Summoned except by fusion!) _

"Looks like you got a bad card." Tsubasa snapped his fingers with a grin. "Darn."

"I'm not done yet! I activate A Feather of a Phoenix! By discarding my second Ojamagic, I can add Ojama Delta Hurricane to the top of my deck! But that's fine, because I'll also get the three Ojama brothers to my hand!" Pulling the three normal monsters out of his dwindling deck, the Chosen flipped around another magic card in his hand. "Ojama Ride lets me ditch three guys to summon Union monsters from my deck, up to three!"

A pair of light erupted from his deck and then settled onto his field, resolving into the form of his Beetron-3 Spider Base and Beetron-2 Beetleturbo, both in defense mode. "Then I'll activate my second Ojamandala, giving up a thousand life points to bring the brothers into play!" (CLP: 1500)

A scrawny yellow creature appeared first, with eyestalks nearly reaching the field. '_Ojama Yellow!'_

Next was a muscular one, green in color and having a tongue that nearly dwarfed it's whole body. '_Ojama Green!'_

The last of them was black and his gut wobbled as he bounced into place next to them. '_Ojama Black!'_

"Yes, yes, and together, you're the Ojama Brothers." Craig had obviously been through this routine many times before. Brushing off the glares the three monsters gave him, he held up yet another magic card. "Ojama Delta Thunder will end this duel! Now you take five hundred damage for each card you control!"

The three Ojama monsters leapt into the air, their bodies crackling with energy. '_Ojama_..." They clasped hands and began to spin, generating a whirling tornado that sparkled with lightning. '_Delta Thunder!'_

"I reveal Rainbow Life! By discarding a card from my hand, all damage I take during this turn is converted to life points!" Tossing one of his two remaining hand cards into the graveyard, Tsubasa smiled as the swirling tornado was rebuffed by a shimmering rainbow barrier that kept it's lightning strikes from reaching him. (TLP: 2700)

Craig grimaced, but pulled a card free from the thin stack that was his deck. "The second effect of my Delta Thunder lets me send my Delta Hurricane to my graveyard to use it's effect!" The whirling tornado lost its crackling lightning, but sped up incredibly fast.

Tsubasa had to brace himself as he felt himself sliding a few inches towards it. His Ancient Gear Gadjiltron Dragon was already a lost cause, the massive titan being sucked into the tornado with incredibly ease. With a shriek, his Shyneet Magician was pulled into the funnel as well, followed by his long forgotten Black Whirlwind card and then the Rainbow Life Trap. "How do they even do that!?"

"I honestly don't know..." Craig watched the tornado vanish and the three Ojamas returned to his field, stumbling around dizzily. "I'll set this card face-down and end my turn."

"Draw!" Yanking the card free, he glanced at it swiftly before plugging it into his disk. "Cards for Black Feathers let me a banish a Blackwing from my hand to draw twice, but I lose my Special Summons for the turn!" He held up a second Shura the Blue Flame before slipping it into the proper slot and plucking two more cards free from his deck.

Craig narrowed his eyes as he saw Neo's image appear again, but this time in front of Tsubasa instead of behind. "You drew your Duel Spirit..."

"I did! So let's go to battle, partner!" Tsubasa slapped down the card, the phantom form of the monster solidifying into a real image. (1700/1000)

The dimensional knight drew his blade and saluted Craig with it. (_You are a worthy opponent, Chosen. I only regret not being able to fight in this battle sooner. But now that I have arrive, your downfall begins!)_

"You got that right, Neo! So cut down one of those Ojamas with _Dimension Sword!_" The knight nodded and charged, slashing his blade sharply through the air. It left a odd-looking gap in the air in its wake..and then a second opening right in front of Ojama Black. He stared at it and then gasped, shattering instantly into dust. Neo's blade had ignored physical distance and traveled through another dimension.

"I reveal Ojamable! Since you destroyed a face-up Ojama, I can shuffle it back into my deck and then draw two cards." Craig swiftly did so. "But now I have to discard one...and oddly enough..." He held up the Ojama Black and then tossed it into the graveyard.

"If your deck is low enough that is happening, then this duel is on it's last legs." Tsubasa slid the other card he had drawn into his disk, the brown-backed card appearing behind Neo. "I end my turn!"

Craig drew and then slapped down a card. "I summon my Beetron-1 Beetletop in attack mode and then I'll union Beetron-2 Beetleturbo to it, raising it's stats by four hundred!" The beetle machine appeared, it's partner breaking apart and latching onto it in a form of crud armor. (1700/1300-2100/1700) _"Beetle Slicer!"_

The rear wheels of the monster peeled out, launching it forwards while the stag beetle horns opened and closed menacingly. Neo grunted as his blade locked with the machine, grinding against it. But it was in vain as the attack sliced him apart and shattered him into pixels. "That ends my turn." (TLP: 2300)

"With a duel like this, I'm not going to slow down even if it is the end game! I draw!" Tsubasa pulled the card free and then his graveyard started glowing. "I'll banish my Vayu and Blackwing- Hillen the Tengu-wind to summon for Blackwing- Armed Wing!" His new Synchro was a bird-man like the other Blackwings, but he was dressed in a heavy trenchcoat and more surprisingly, wielded a pump-action shotgun. (2300/1000)

"Attack with Blackfeather Buckshot!" The Blackwing cocked the weapon and swooped in, firing at near point-blank range. The Spider Base was decimated, the blast shredding it apart and reducing it to so much shrapnel. "I end my turn!"

Craig drew again and stared at the card for a long moment before playing it. "I activate Pot of Avarice! Now by shuffling five monsters from my graveyard into my deck, I can draw two cards!" His graveyard swiftly slid five cards out and he held them up, revealing all of them had the purple border of a fusion monster. "But since they all go to the Extra Deck, I just draw twice!"

Tsubasa bit his lip as the other man drew the first card. _(He didn't pick any of his monsters to shuffle back...even with his deck that low, he's risking everything to get that card...)_ He saw something like a spark pass between Craig and the second card as he pulled it free, the hair on the back of the Shadowchaser's neck standing up sharply. (_He drew it!)_

"Alright, Tsubasa...you said this was the end game, right?" Craig held up the second card he had drawn. "I'm fine with that! I sacrifice my three monsters to summon out my God Card!"

The three monsters vanished into a pool of light on the field of him. Within it moments had spread out, becoming an outrageously and beautifully complex seal of golden and blue light. It flared sharply once and then Apira rose out of it, her whole form radiating grace and knowledge. "Apira the Grand Summoner!" (3600/4000)

Tsubasa took a cautious step back to appraise the goddess. While she was still no bigger than either himself or Craig, it was one thing to see her in a spirit form and another to see her in the flesh. He could practically feel the power flowing off of her. "Not the flashiest of entrances for a God card, you know."

"Geeze, I'm sorry I don't have a giant metal bird that I can light on fire. Would that be more to your liking?" Craig didn't bother to wait for answer to his question. "I activate one of Apira's abilities! I can summon any monster in our graveyards, ignoring the summoning conditions! _Summons of the Goddess!"_

Apira spun her staff in front of her, the weapon leaving a circle in the air. Stepping away form it, she snapped out her hand and the circle become a massive summoning seal. It roared with power and then the titanic form of Assault Cannon Knight lumbered out of it, its colors duller than normal and three motes of light were orbiting it. "My monster may be minus his effects, but that's okay because he still keeps everyone of his attack points! Which are going straight for your Blackwing! _Power Sword!_"

Lightning flashed as the fusion's weapon sheared through the smaller monster, the force of the blow actually hurling Tsubasa back a half dozen feet and leaving a small gouge in the stone. (TLP: 1200)

"This duel is over! Apira will attack your life points directly! _Summon Majesty!_" The goddess nodded again and swept her staff out before her , a half-dozen small summoning circles appearing in the air around her. They began to glow and then unleashed a staccato of energy blasts that hammered into Tsubasa's field and swallowed it up with light.

Then a defiant yell filled the air and Craig's and Apira's eyes widened as the energy from the attack was scattered. Tsubasa was standing tall, clad in red and white armor that vaguely resembled a dragon. It was smoking a bit, but whatever it was made out of had been enough to resist the goddess' strike. "We're not finished yet!"

"What the hell!?" Craig stared as Tsubasa jumped back to his proper spot. "How on God's green earth did you become a Duel Monster?"

"It's because your attack let me activate my trap card! Aura Armor!" The Shadowchaser grinned and swept out a hand. "It summons itself as a monster card when I'm attacked with two thousand or less life points! The Battle Phase is ended and my new monster's stats are equal to half of my what my life points were." (600/600) (TLP: 600)

"That...was...pretty damn cool!" Despite his loss of another chance a victory, Craig looked anything but put out. "You're one strange guy, Tsubasa, but damned if you aren't one of the most fun duelists I've ever played against!" He slid a card into his disk. "End of turn!"

"I could say the same about you. I haven't had a duel this exciting since...well, ever!" The Shadowchaser drew for his turn. "I activate Awakening From Beyond! I get a card back from my graveyard, but you draw twice!"

Craig complied with the effect. "I've only got two cards left...you think you can hang on long enough to deck me out?"

"No well! That's a crappy way to end a duel like this! I'm going to drive for the win with everything my partner and I can bring to the table!" Tsubasa held up his Neo The Magical Swordsman card and the last remaining card in his hand, which was Polymerization "Alright partner, time to unlock some of your real power!"

"Real power..." Craig watched as a whirlwind of energy suddenly swallowed the other duelist. "You're fusing with your partner!"

"In a manner of circumstances." The voice that emitted from the whirlwind sounded like Tsubasa's, but it was deeper and more mature. A sword slashed the energy apart, revealing a man with Tsubasa's features standing there. He wore heavy plate armor that was dark gold with blue trim and highlights, a crest emblazoned on the breastplate. Light gleamed over the massive broadsword he held in both hands, it's blade nearly as long as he was tall. The wings of the Aura Armor were still there and they flared as the knight rested his weapon over his shoulder. "By fusing Neos with a Warrior-type monster like the Aura Armor monster, I can summon Neo the Shattering Knight!" (2500/1500)

"Damn, that's impressive." Craig whistled in appreciation for a second. "But you're still outclassed in attack power by both of my monsters."

"There is a reason that this form represents the pinnacle of Neo's master over arms and martial discipline. As well as why he has earned the title of 'Shattering Knight.' The fusion being's sword began to shine sharply in the light. "During the turn I summon him, he can add his defense score to his attack score and when he attacks, his strike cannot be negated or blocked at all!" An aura erupted around him and he crouched down slightly, letting his blade level to his side. (2500-4000)

With a might battle cry, the knight charged across the field so forcefully the ground he had been standing on shattered. Power flared around him as he tore across the distance separating and Apira. "This is our combined power, Chosen! _Shattering Blow!_"

"Apira and I won't lose that easily!" Craig's set card flipped up. "Master Magician's Incantation lets me activate a Spell Card from my hand for field as if it were a quick-play card!" He slammed a card into his disk. "Shield Attack swaps her attack and defense points! _Summon Majesty!_" (3600-4000)

Apira slashes her staff through the air, the summoning circles opening up all over in front of her and unleashing a seemingly endless volley of blasts that merged into a single combined attack. At the same moment it reached the charging Neo and Tsubasa, the fusion swung his weapon into it. The two attacks left forth an ear-splitting roar as they collided and light spilled forth in all directions, so bright that it was blinding...

TTTTTTT

"So then what happened?" Adrian, despite the fact he was currently swatting and jumping at the motes of light the sunlight revealed to him, had been paying attention to the entire story.

"According to Tsubasa, he and Neo just woke up back on the street completely after that final clash. Apparently the duel generated enough energy to get them all out of there." Jalal watched as Adrian pawed at the motes of light. "And nearly no time had passed between when he left and when he returned. It is a bit of an unbelievable tale..."

"And why is that?" Adrian gave up on the motes of light, taking a short leap up onto his fiend's desk gracefully.

"He just so happens to randomly blasted into a prison like place where he meets a duelist from another dimension who is a servant of a goddess?" Jalal steeped his fingers together. "Even given the penchant for odd things to happen to Shadowchasers over the years, stories like that still stick out."

"You have a point." The cat yawned and then stretched behind an ear vigorously. "But I happen to have meet that Craig person Tsubasa dueled once and his goddess, too. A strange pair, indeed..."

"Really?" Jalal lifted an eyebrow briefly. "Is there anything that goes on in the Multiverse that you don't at least have an inkling of?"

"Boy bands. Boy bands and horrible written teen romance stories. I'm still not certain if those are plots from the forces of darkness or not." Shaking himself out, the cat stretched himself. "This still leaves me with one question, though."

"And that would be?"

"What happened to that Giant Rex spirit?" Then there was a loud roar and the window to the office bucked inwards, a fang-filled mouth nuzzling in. A few seconds later, it retreated and there was the sound of something big stomping away.

"Ohhhh..." Judy LaBaron poked her head in through the mess, looking chagrined and sheepish. "Sorry, Jalal! He got out of the pen again!" The sounds of grinding stone where suddenly heard and she 'eeped!', vanishing towards the noises. "Hey! Hey! You put that golem down, Mr. Snuffles! Right now!"

Another roar and this almost sounded petulant.

"Don't you give me that! You know what you what you did was wrong! Bad, Mr. Snuffles, bad!"

A sheepish roar.

"I'm not falling for those puppy-dog eyes again!"

Jalal grabbed his coffee mug and calmly took a drink, casting his gaze upwards. Adrian was somehow clinging ceiling, stiff-legged and his fur sticking straight up on end. "Once you figure out that you claws are too short to do that and gravity is still in effect, could you help us send Mr. Snuffles home?"

The leader of the Shadowchasers settled back into his chair, taking another drink. "Judy wants a pet, but I just don't think she's ready for one..."

"Weee!" A glance outside of his ruined window allowed him to see the Giant Rex stomping past in the other direction, Judy riding on his neck.

"Honestly, who names a pet 'Mr. Snuffles?' So immature..."

TTTTTTT

_A/N: Heh...this chapter is over twice the length of the previous one. I guess I let the duel get away from me, but I was having too much fun writing it to notice. Hehe...well, I won't make all the future ones _quite_ so long. _

_Anyway, I have a habit for dueling stories I picked from reading 'Rurouni Kenshin' oh-so-many years ago and that is I like include a 'Secret Life of Characters' section, mostly discussing their pasts, themes, decks if they use one and my personal inspiration for them. I forgot one in the previous chapter, so you'll get a double dose here. _

_However, unless the Shadowchaser in question for the chapter dueled, I'll skip over them for this since I don't want to spoil their strategies. So in lieu of that, another original character will get the spotlight._

Secret Life of Characters #1

Mister Monster, the Creator of Nightmares

"_The boundaries of science. What a foolish notion. There are no boundaries to research or knowledge. Only those who lack the will and drive to see beyond the concepts of 'morality' and 'decency' that we ascribe to out of fear of what lies beyond our human sight. So why not move beyond 'human'?"_

_History_: His name has long been lost to any kind of history. At once time, he was a man like so many others of his time, an alchemist and demonologist who sought to find out secrets and knowledge not accessible to mortals.

It is a path to be carefully trod. the shadows in the dark side of knowledge gone on forever and one can plunge too far, too deep...give up too much. Many have lost their souls, their lives and their sanity in this quest for knowledge.

But one cannot give up what they do not have.

'Morality'. 'Ethics'. 'Humanity'

To Mister Monster, these things are but concepts. Understood, but ignored. He has spent crossed lines and done things that even the most hardened of researchers, demonologists and the like would hesitate to even consider. And through his hundreds of years of research, he has become second to none in his creation of new life. Spliced together monstrosities, creatures born demons and nightmares beyond this plane, golems of flesh and steel, all warped and tweaked to satisfy his curiosity, to see what the limits are. Anything new encountered is to sampled, analyzed, added to and taken from to, tested and adjusted. And the results are utterly terrifying.

But the only thing that is worse than these nightmares given existence is the being that was once a man who made them.

_Deck:_ It would be difficult to find Mister Monster in a situation that would require a duel. He is pragmatic to the extreme and would rather simply kill anyone who interrupts or impedes his research. But someone who could force him into a Shadow Game or a similar form of battle will find that he is a capable duelist. And given his pragmatic nature, he would use a deck that those of us who read fanfiction would consider 'meta'. Obviously, there is no 'meta' in the world of Yu-gi-oh!, but the cards that can be are and Mister Monster would use any strategy that would be the most effective. Dino-Rabbit, Dark World, Six Samurai and the like would all be likely strategies. (A deck, such as Diamond Dude Turbo or Tele-DAD would be out of his reach, given that the D-Hero cards that make the cornerstone of their moves exist as one set only. So keep this in mind.)

_Origins: _If I had to identify Mister Monster with any particular thematic, it would be 'Purest pursuit of knowledge.' He exists as a character who simply wants to see his curiosity satiated and that happens to be in the worst way for the rest of us. He is intellectual to the point where things like emotions and ordinary conventions simply are discarded willingly because they hinder his pursuit of knowledge. He's a type of character I've never really worked a lot with before and so I hope I can do more with him. Or if not me, another Shadowchaser author.

Secret Life of Characters #2

Tsubasa Springweather

"_A duel? I'll take anyone on, anytime, anyplace! It'll be a blast!"_

_History_: Tsubasa's family line is unique. Backwater, Nebraska, is a town populated purely by Shadows and Aware and has been since it's foundation. As such, there are plenty of half-breed citizens. But the Springweathers stand out above the rest because their bloodline seems to have every human-compatible Shadowkind somewhere within the twisted and gnarled forest that makes up their family tree. Tsubasa is the latest of this line.

Interestingly, his heritage means he is still human and the Shadow blood in his veins means his physical attributes are above the human norm, but give him no other special ability beyond Awareness save for a unique knack for guessing the bloodlines in any Shadow's history just by looking at them.

Some would say it's also made him a crazy person.

The whole reason he joined up for the Shadowchasers (beyond it being a family tradition) was to find the toughest and cleverest duelists he could. However, his passion seems to have a knack for landing him in the most inexplicable situations to get to these duels. Whether it be stumbling upon a dark elf drug ring because he got lost trying to return a shirt or discovering the Stork in the middle of job because he wanted to go stargazing atop that particular roof, he's never been at a lack for interesting opponents and stories to tell because of it.

Perhaps the greatest manifestation of this odd luck would be the fact that he can see Duel Spirits. His partner is Neo the Magical Swordsman and he arrived the day of Tsubasa's initiation to the Shadowchasers. Tsubasa promptly spat out his drink at the sight of the monster appearing in front of him and announcing him to be his squire. (He still owes Shichiro a new shirt.)

Neo, as it is so far, seems content to merely observe Tsubasa's life and beyond helping the youth in a few fights and his duels, has taken no active decisions to help Tsubasa reach whatever the Duel Spirit considers knighthood. There is the implication that Neo's presence serves some purpose, but as to what, Tsubasa could could care less so long as it leads him to an interesting duel.

He still wants a proper rematch with Craig, given the inconclusiveness of their first match. With his luck and Neo around, it may just happen some day...

_Deck:_ Tsubasa never has been one to settle and focus on one strategy for two long. Always wanting to try something new or original, he is forever perusing the latest card releases and booster packs for something new to mix with something old. With the money Jalal provides for his teams, acquiring all but the rarest of cards he wants is an easy task and he's not above going out for a trading binge or wager duel if the sellers are open to it.

The deck he's using at the moment is his latest brainchild, but the next time he appears, he maybe using a Counter Fairy deck focusing on discard traps so he can bring out Dark World monsters, with Sky Scourges sitting in the background.

Oddly, he posses two upgraded forms of Neo. Both appeared in his Extra Deck the same day Neo himself arrived and while he doesn't always use them, he fits them into any deck that uses fusions and Neo always has a slot in his deck.

_Origins:_ Tsubasa is the 'always having fun, for fun's sake' kind of person I think you don't see too often in Shadowchaser fics and is a lighter contrast to some of the darker members of the team. His playstyle is actually the kind of mentality that I used in my early days- if a card was cool or interesting, I'd tech into my deck and see how it worked. The first time I made it to the finals in my local tournament back during the Chaos Emperor Dragon days was with a Muka Muka/Ojama deck and ever since, I'd have a soft spot for that kind of duelist. And it's a lot of fun to break conventions.

Created Cards:

Craig-

_Note: In Craig's world of origin, when the release of the other monsters besides V-Z, they realized that any support released for the cards would have massive walls of text and that any monster with those letters and a hyphen next to them in their names could possibly benefit from those cards. (See the Yu-gi-oh! Wikia for what the mess looks like with the 'Hyper Coat' card.) As such, all of the Fusions had 'Effect' on their card replaced with 'Gestalt' and it was ruled that all of the component pieces were 'Gestalt' monsters as well. This resolved the issue rather well, but I do not know if a similar ruling or the cards exist in the Shadowchaser's world, so if you want to use these cards, talk to Cyber Commander about it before you talk to me._

_On that note, 'Gestalt' is not considered a actual monster-type, so you cannot use something like 'DNA Surgery' to make monsters 'Gestalt' monsters. _

A- Alpha Unit  
LIGHT  
4 stars  
Machine/Effect  
1600/1500  
Effect: Once per turn, you may send one Gestalt monster from your Deck to your Graveyard. Until the End Phase, this card's name is treated as the selected monster's name.

B- Wave-Rider Mammoth  
LIGHT  
4 stars  
Machine/Union  
1900/1200  
Effect: Once per turn, during your Main Phase, if you control this card on the field, you can equip it to your 'A-Alpha Unite' as an Equip Card. OR unequip the Union equipment and Special Summon this card in face-up Attack Position. While equipped to a monster by this card's effect, increase the ATK and DEF of the equipped monster by 400 points. (1 monster can only be equipped with 1 Union Monster at a time. If the equipped monster is destroyed as a result of battle, destroy this card instead.)

C-Arbine Racer  
LIGHT  
4 stars  
Machine/Union  
1500/1600  
Effect: Once per turn, during your Main Phase, if you control this card on the field, you can equip it to your 'A-Alpha Unite' or 'B-Waver-Racer Mammoth' as an Equip Card. OR unequip the Union equipment and Special Summon this card in face-up Attack Position. While equipped to a monster by this card's effect, increase the ATK and DEF of the equipped monster by 400 points. (1 monster can only be equipped with 1 Union Monster at a time. If the equipped monster is destroyed as a result of battle, destroy this card instead.)

CY-Dragon Racer  
LIGHT  
6 stars  
Machine/Fusion/Gestalt  
2100/1600  
Effect: C-Arbine Racer + Y-Dragon Head  
This card any only be Special Summoned from your Extra Deck by banishing the above cards you control. (You do not use 'Polymerization'.) You can discard one card from your Hand and target one face-up monster on your opponent's side of the field. Reduced the selected monster's ATK to 0 until the End Phase.

BC-Wave-Racer Mammoth  
LIGHT  
6 stars  
Machine/Fusion/Gestalt  
2400/1800  
Effect: B-Waver-Rider Mammoth + C-Arbine Racer  
This card any only be Special Summoned from your Extra Deck by banishing the above cards you control. (You do not use 'Polymerization'.) You can discard one card from your Hand and target one face-up monster on your opponent's side of the field. Negate that monster's effect(s) as long as it is face-up on the field.

AYZ-Alpha Metal Dragoon  
LIGHT

8 stars  
Machine/Fusion/Gestalt  
2800/2700  
Effect: A-Alpha Unite + Y-Dragon Head + Z-Metal Tank  
This card any only be Special Summoned from your Extra Deck by banishing the above cards you control. (You do not use 'Polymerization'.) You may only activate the following effect if this card is the only monster you control: Discard up to 3 cards from your Hand. (Any effects of cards discarded by this effect are not activated.) Your opponent must randomly discard cards from their Hand equal to the number you discarded. You may not Summon during the turn you activate this effect.

XYZ- Assault Cannon Knight  
LIGHT  
8 stars  
Machine/Fusion/Gestalt  
3600/2800  
Effect: May only be Special Summoned with the effect of 'Alt. Mode Transformation'. Once per turn, when your opponent Summons a monster, you may discard one card from your Hand to negate the Summon and destroy that monster. Then inflict damage to your opponent's life points equal to 200x the destroyed monster's level.

Apira the Grand Summoner  
DIVINE  
12 stars  
Spellcaster/Effect  
3600/4000  
Effect: Why are you trying to read my card's secrets? You aren't my Chosen! Get your grubby mitts off me and go drool over a Dark Magician Girl or something! You're a hundred years too early to handle me!

Last Testament  
Normal Spell Card  
Effect: You may only activate this card during your Main Phase 2. If a monster you own was destroyed and sent to the Graveyard this turn, you may select one monster in your Deck that has the same Type and Attribute, but who's level is less than the destroyed monster's level and Special Summon it.

Alphabet Soupercharger  
Normal Spell Card  
Effect: If this card is discarded for the effect of a Gestalt monster, you may draw two cards. When you Special Summon a Gestalt monster from the Extra Deck and this card is in your Graveyard, you may add it to your hand.

NOTE: This card is restricted to 2 per Deck in Craig's home universe.

Dimensional Shift  
Normal Spell Card  
Effect: Banish one Gestalt Fusion monster you control. Special Summon up to two non-Fusion Gestalt monsters from your Banished pile.

Alt. Mode Transformation  
Trap Card  
Effect: Select and activate one of the following effects:  
1. Tribute one 'Assault Cannon Beetle' and Special Summon one 'Combat Scissors Beetle' from your Extra Deck, ignoring the Summoning Conditions.

2. Tribute one 'XYZ- Dragon Cannon and Special Summon one 'XYZ- Assault Cannon Knight' from your Extra Deck.

Tsubasa-

Great Gadget Blue  
4 stars  
EARTH  
Machine/Fusion/Effect  
2000/2000  
Effect: Green Gadget + Red Gadget + Yellow Gadget  
This card's name is also treated as 'Green Gadget', 'Red Gadget' and 'Yellow Gadget' while it face-up on the field. You may tribute this face-up card to Special Summon 1 of each: 'Green Gadget', 'Red Gadget' and 'Yellow Gadget' from your Graveyard. The effects of the monsters summoned by this effect are negated.

Aura Armor  
Continuous Trap Card  
Effect: You may only activate this card when your opponent declares a direct attack and your life points are 2000 or less. End the Battle Phase and summon this card as an Effect Monster. (It is also treated as a Trap Card) (EARTH/4 stars/Warrior/?/?) When this card is Summoned, halve your Life Points. This card's ATK and DEF are equal to your Life Points. If this card is sent to the graveyard while it is an Effect Monster, you may, once per duel, Special Summon this card from the Graveyard if it is targeted by a card effect that can Special Summon it.

NOTE: _Aura Armor was first used by Joey Wheeler in 'Fighting for a Friend PT4.'. The effect on the wikia has you summoning a 'Player Token' instead, but because after Joey used this card to as part of the tribute to summon Lord of the Red and Valon used Extinction Fist on Lord of the Red, this card was summoned back to the field along with Red-Eyes Black Dragon. Since tokens are simply removed from the field when they leave it, I have changed it into a trap monster in order to satisfy how it works in the anime. _

Neo The Shattering Knight  
EARTH  
7 stars  
Warrior/Fusion/Effect  
2500/1500  
Effect: Neo the Magical Swordsman + 1 Warrior-type monster  
During the turn this card is Fusion Summoned, you may increase this card's ATK by its DEF until the End Phase. If this card attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing Battle Damage to your opponent. If this card is targeted by a Spell or Trap effect during the Battle Phase, negate that effect.

NOTE: _This card is one-of-a-kind and belongs to Tsubasa Springweather. _

TTTTTTT

_See you all next time! Later Dayz! _


	3. Side Story: The Librarian's Tale

Shadowchasers: Twice-Told Tales  
By 7th Librarian

A/N:_Been a while, hasn't it? Well, here's something special and, I hope, very good, to make up for it. Enjoy._

Side-Story: The Librarian's Tale

The Shadow Queen sat on her throne.

Not an unusual occurrence, in and of itself, for any ruler to sit on their throne. After all, it is the central representation of their power and right to rule. A throne is iconic in and of itself, a power all its own. And to be seated in one, whether one was a king, a queen, a tyrant or dictator or even a lord of the heavenly hosts or master of demons and devils, was a right granted to only a few and as such, made them all the more regal and imposing, all the more the masters of their domain.

And anyone upon the mortal plane at the moment would have found themselves an impossible task to look more regal and beautiful than the Shadow Queen. She was dressed in a sleeveless black dress that was designed to accent her curves and upon closer inspection, would reveal that instead of one single piece of material, it was dozens of intricate weaves and designs woven together. Elegant gloves covered her arms up to the elbows and the backs of the hands had simple, flat oval opals sewn onto them. A necklace of gold and silver clung to her pale throat, a teardrop ruby hanging down in the hollow. Her hair was done tastefully, enough of it loose that it spilled down her shoulders and back in waves, splaying out at the waist.

Save for the annoyed frustration on her face, one could have said she was a picture to inspire the artists of yesteryear to paint her portrait. And even with the look, it was hardly anything deleterious.

She leaned her chin in her hand, fuming quietly. "Of course he's late. He was never on time back then, even for a war, so why, oh why, for the last thousand years should he be on time for anything else?" As she spoke, she twirled a pair of wire-rim half-moon glasses in her free hand.

They skipped off of the stone arm and she glanced at them, glad to have a new focus for her irritation. "And why do I bother with these? It's not like I need them..." But she knew why she bothered with them. _He_ liked it when she wore them and it was a simple enough request to follow, given all that he did when he showed up. If nothing else, he would flatter her with compliments and that alone made good use of his obnoxious mouth.

With a sigh, she fell back against the throne's backrest, drumming perfect nails against the arm. With a twitch of her finger, a phantasmal clock appeared in front of her. It read 9:15. "Wonderful..fifteen minutes and counting..."

Another twitch dispersed the clock and she shifted in the chair, gaze sliding across the room she was in. It wasn't the throne room of the palace, but an observation deck of a kind. Midway up the height of the mountain that made up the palace, it was simply a vast circle with no walls and only columns around the outside. With a simple twitch of her hand, the spaces between the columns faded out and became a panoramic view of Arcadia, letting in the sights and sounds and even the wind if she so chose.

The curse kept her inside, but it did not keep her from letting the outside in.

Standing up, she strode towards the closet viewport, the throne bursting into shadows idly behind her. Stopping the edge, she felt the night breeze pass by, the soft smell of the trees and her ears even picked the sounds of animals far below on the sly. And in the distance, she could see the lights of Petalburg.

Just one step. Just one step separated her from the outside word.

But she knew if she tried to take that step, a force she could not conquer would shove her back, drive back into the gilded cage she herself had constructed. There was no way out, no way to circumvent it because there was no way to leave. Any attempt to exit, whether by foot, teleportation, portals, dimensional gateways or anything else that required her to leave the borders of the palace simply failed to work for her.

There was only way to leave, one to leave the cold stone of her prison. And already, her plans were in motion. Inevitably spinning their way to completion. It was only a matter of time. One way or another, the bloodlines of those who had imprisoned her would fall and that accursed door would at last open for her.

Still...there was always that chance...she reached an elegant hand forwards, just over the edge of the mountain...

And then retracted it as sparks flew, stinging her. It was no flaw or weakness in this prison. She couldn't have done it better herself.

But soon...soon...soon it would be different.

Tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear, she raked her eyes over what remained of her once great empire. An empire that she had forged personally. As dark and twisted as people called her, she would never give them reason to call her a coward. Never again. And those who had been cowards in her presence suffered the worst. It disgusted her, disgusted her now as it had a thousand years ago.

The Three Heroes...her conquerors, her greatest of enemies...she hated them for what they had done. But it was a hate on a professional level. They were enemies and there was no fault to them for that. After all, hadn't she done the same to those she considered her enemies? Risen up, up to the heights and crushed them beneath her heel. So, yes, she hated them, but there was no small measure of respect there to.

It was this respect that kept her from making the mistakes of the past, of underestimating their bloodlines once again. She was taking every precaution, every angle and possibility into account. The Three Heroes had defeated her at the height of her power and their heirs would need to be treated with the same respect as they were, if she was to beat them now at a fraction of that might.

Her eyes slipped up, across the stars that dotted the sky and the full moon that hung over the island. It was almost ominous, colored a rusty red, as if predicting the blood that would spill once the final stages of her plan were put into motion.

It was so like another moon she had seen, a thousand years ago, when the Heroes had stormed her palace and even further back, the time she had encountered that one person who had earned her respect...

TTTTTTT

_Black fire scraped across the cobblestones, scattering the soldiers before her. Those that were unlucky enough to avoid screamed and wailed as the fire twisted up along their armor, searing and cooking them inside._

_The Shadow Queen sneered as they ran before her and her own soldiers poured forwards around, seizing the opportunity as the enemy's formation broke. Like a black tide, they swarmed through the streets and down the alleyways. No nook or cranny escaped their might, filling the town and crushing the resistance before them like water washing away filth._

_Twisting the reigns of her mount, she guided the horse through the streets at an almost leisurely place, surveying the destruction of the town. Smoke poured up in great columns, masking both the stars in the sky and the blazes that produced them. Fires so intense that stone buildings slid in on themselves, melted to slag. And above it all, the sounds of battle and the cries of the wounded and dying echoed._

_Armor clanked against the stones and she turned her head. "General U'ulgan...report."_

_The massive general nearly dwarfed the structures of the city, but he knelt all the same alongside his men before her. "The city is ours, Shadow Queen. The last pockets of heavy resistance are being crushed as we speak and we should be able to refortify the city within the next two days in case of enemy counterattack."_

"_Excellent. We should be able to use this city as a stronghold to assault the rest of the cities along the shore. Signal Admiral Wayburn. He has three days prepare his fleet for the invasions. If he's not there by the time we march on their gates, tell him my displeasure will be noted by the tidal wave I create to smash his precious ship to splinters."_

_U'ulgan smiled. "It shall be done." Then all of their heads snapped towards the sounds of fighting nearby, stemming from an alleyway. Soldiers crowded the alleyway, then parted to let the bodies of their fellows come flying out, others staggering out missing hands and arms, blood spattering across them all._

"_I thought you said the heavy resistance was being crushed!" She glared an accusation at the general, who rumbled to his feet and gestured. Three members of the Company of Malice surged forwards, knocking aside the human soldiers like they were nothing and disappeared into the darkness of the alleyway._

_For a long minute, there was nothing but the sound of fighting and the growls and snarls from the Company members. The rest of the soldiers crowded around the entrance in a loose circle, wary and nervous._

_Then there was an unearthly scream of pain and one of the Company members came staggering out, his sword rammed up through his jaw and out his skull. Black blood poured from the wound and then his eyes rolled back before he pitched forwards._

_Before the soldiers could react, the second member came sliding backwards on the alley forcefully, scattering them. He was impaled on a polearm, dangling from the blade like a stuck pig. The third member was faring no better, a heavy length of chain wound around his neck, the blade at the end piercing his throat._

_Between the two was a young boy, barely hitting his teen years. His clothes were torn and ragged, blood and black ichor soaking them and staining near all of his visible skin. His wild, untamed mane of black hair was slick with it as well._

"_Impossible...!" U'ulgan thundered in disbelief as the youth used the chained-up demon as a makeshift flail, smashing and scattering the soldiers surrounding him with one blow before the chain snapped. Wrenching the polearm free of its victim, he snarled and attacked whatever soldiers remained standing. "No mere human can defeat the Company of Malice!"_

"_He seems to be proving otherwise, General..." The Queen replied dryly, watching as the youth tore through her soldiers, his polearm chipping and fragmenting as through sheer force of strength and will he forced it through their armor. When the weapon finally broke, he simply rammed the end of the shaft through another soldier's face, wrenching the poor sod's sword for his own at the same time._

"_He fights like a pathetic animal, not a warrior." The General sneered as more of the Company marched forwards as the youth finished off the rest of human soldiers violently, actually using his free hand to break one of their necks. "We will gut him and string him up like one!"_

"_Mm...you do that..." The Queen was hardly paying attention to him at this point, watching intently as the youth backed away from the advancing line of soldiers. Even to her eye, he was easy to tell he was untrained in the use of the weapons, but fought with the simple intense cunning and savagery of a beast. And now that he was becoming truly cornered, she found herself quite curious as to how he would react._

"_He will make a good dummy for my soldiers after he is dead and stuffed." U'ulgan watched as a second line of demons came around the end of the street in perfect lockstep. "He has no escape now."_

_The youth seemed to realize this, his eyes scanning wildly for another avenue to escape with. But the alley he had been found in was a dead end and the buildings were too sheer and high to climb._

_Then his eyes locked on the Shadow Queen's and a mirthless, utterly feral smile spread across his face. She gave him a cold smile in return. "Whatever you are thinking, boy, it is useless."_

_In response, he dropped the sword and grabbed a fallen mace from one of the Company members he had slain. Turning to the closet building, he began hammer at the corner fervently._

"_He has gone mad..." U'ulgan spat derisively. "A feral beast, unable to accept when he was about to die." Stone chips flew as the boy swung all the more ferociously, tearing great chunks of the stone away. "Company! Charge and slay!"_

_With a united roar, the demons on both sides of the street broke into a charge, weapons raised and eager for blood. And even as his death approached, the boy simply kept hammering away at the corner._

_The Queen watched with narrowed eyes. Something wasn't right. Even a stupid enemy would have backed up to the wall to protect their flanks and fought to the death. But he was attacking the wall as savagely as if it were his mortal enemy._

_Then she saw one blow from him send tremors along the walls surface, ripples on an ocean. "U'ulgan! Call your men back! He's-"_

_It was too late. The structure, weakened from the fighting and flames, gave a tremendous groan, swayed and then finally crumbled. And without the wall supporting the weight, the second floor of the building followed the path of least resistance. Nearly a ton of stone came careening down into the street. To the unfortunate soldiers caught underneath, it must have been like a mountain falling on them._

_The Queen's horse bucked at the cacophony and the cloud of dust the debris kicked it up. She cursed quietly as the animal threw her from its back, galloping away in fright at the screams of the crushed and dying men. "Blasted creature...!"_

_The building the boy had collapsed nearly walled off the street completely. U'ulgan, to his credit, had stepped in front of her and shielded her from the worst of the debris. The general vented his displeasure at getting tricked by slicing a hunk of the largest rubble in two. "So the beast makes its escape!"_

"_You fool! He's not escaping!" The Queen got her to feet, remembering that grin on the boy's face when they had locked eyes. "He's attacking!"_

_Again, her warning had come too late. The boy came flying over the mountain of rubble and through the dust cloud. Ichor and blood gleamed off the sword he hand in his left and the mace in his right and as U'ulgan moved in front of him, he didn't hesitate, instead letting out a snarl and leaping off a piece of stone._

_The general's height worked against him, his size and proximity to the rubble pile putting the boy within his range and too close for him react fast enough. He twisted his head reflexively, the mace simply shattering against the helm of unearthly metal. But the boy merely skipped off his shoulder, careening straight for the Queen with his blade leading the way._

_She stepped out of the way of the initial lunge, casting a fireball at the spot where he was going to land, but his instincts were better than she thought as he simply rolled through his landing. But then the smell of burnt flesh hit her nostrils and as he whirled to his feet, she could see the black lines of that flesh the magic had left._

_His eyes burning with a vicious, savagely cunning battlelust, he came at her headlong. Sneering, she lifted a hand and unleashed a bolt of power at his chest. To her surprise, he actually counterattacked with a two-handed swing and not breaking his stride. The blade snapped in half from the bolt, but it was enough that it merely scorched a small hole through his shoulder rather than his heart._

_Another bolt was surging to life in her hands – he was too close to her to risk a fireball that wouldn't explode in her face – but he ducked down and as her hand and eyes tracked him, his hand flashed out. An angry cry exploded from her as the dust and stone hit her in the face and eyes, the bolt of power go wild._

_Then his broken weapon pierced her flesh, the jagged pieces actually catching and piercing her heart and her blood flew as it tore out of her back._

_Had she been anything else, she would have been dead._

_But she was not just something else, she was the Shadow Queen and mundane things like her heart being torn from her chest were inconvenient, not fatal. As she grasped the blade and wrenched it free – with her heart still attached – shadows pooled around the wound and transformed into a new heart, flesh, bone and muscle, her body knitting itself back together. Wiping the dust from her eyes, she saw U'ulgan had seized the boy in one mighty hand, a grip that could shatter boulders._

"_Your audacity is astounding for a mortal beast." The general rumbled, squeezing-ever-so-slowly and the creak of the boy's bones were just audible over the sound of the general's armor. "I will mount your head alongside my other kills as a small respect to that."_

"_Stop." The Queen had to spit out a glob of blood and dust to get the word out, but it was audible nonetheless. "Do not kill him."  
_

_U'ulgan glanced down at her, mouth opening to protest, but she cut him. "I just had my heart stabbed out, general. I have no patience at the moment. So let him go."_

"_Feh." The demon complied with an irritated look, and the boy crashing in a heap on his knees._

_She approached him, his broken weapon still in her hand. "Boy. Look at me." When he didn't respond or move, she crooked a finger and unseen forces lifted his chin. "I said, look at me."_

_His black hair hung twisted around his face, his breath harsh and ragged. But as his eyes met hers, the cunning savagery and intensity around them had hardly dimmed. "Do you know how many people have tried to do what you just did?"_

_He opened his mouth, but it came out as a hard cough and spattering of blood. Apparently the general's grip had been stopped just in time. Ignoring the mess, she continued. "Several hundred, if not more. And not a one of them has gotten close to slaying me in any fashion. It seems that there is no end to the run of fools who think they can kill the Shadow Queen. Tell me...are you one of those fools?"_

"_Shadow Queen? What's that?" He sneered up at her. "I don't know anything of you or your men or even this town. You threatened to take what is mine and I fought for it. If that makes me a fool, than I am one."_

"_And what exactly is 'yours' that we tried to take?"_

"My life." He bared a feral smile. "It is the only thing I have and I will not let anyone take it from me."

"_Watch your mouth, beast." U'ulgan enforced his warning with a lovetap of a backhand that nearly knocked the youth a few feet in the air. "You speak before Her Majesty, who's power and reign extends over all she sees! Do not pretend you do not know of her!"_

_The boy merely straightened and ignored him._

"_He isn't lying, U'uglan. I can feel the truth in his words. No one is brave to feign ignorance of me." She cupped the boy's face, bringing it around to face her own and peered at him with silver eyes. He was brave, indeed. Most flinched when she met their gaze. "Why did you attack me? After you knocked down the wall, you could have easily fled."_

"_You would have never stopped hunting me, never get over the fact I was the one who got away. I saw it in your eyes." There was that mirthless, feral grin again. "And if you kill the head of the pack, the rest of the wolves will scatter."_

"_How interesting..." She straightened the rusty red moon behind her. "But since you are beaten, then your life is mine, isn't it?"_

"_No." The boy sneered again. "I am still alive, still breathing. Until you end my life, it is mine to do with as I wish, forever. You may only choose to end it or not. You can never take it."_

"_Such audacity..." The Shadow Queen stared at him for a long moment. He was young, like they were...and she had been...before she had chosen the path to power. "Tell me, would you willingly give me your life?"_

_He studied her, wary. A beast deciding whether the new animal in its territory was prey or rival. "Why would you want it? You have these demons and nightmares made flesh to kill your enemies with."_

"_I do not want to end your life, I want to own it, dear boy. A bargain, a pact, between you and I."_

"_And what would you offer in return? What do you have that has value enough to match the one thing I posses?" A mocking look crossed his face. "You are beautiful, but so are the ones in the brothels."_

_To everyone else's surprise – the Queen's included – she merely smiled at his disrespect. "You have a fire. I like that." She traced her fingers over his face and jawline almost tenderly, keeping his eyes on hers. "But I can offer you more than the momentary pleasures of flesh, boy. I can offer you strength...power...purpose."_

_She held up the blade he had stabbed her with and wrenched her heart free from it, casting the weapon aside. "As you can see, I have no real use for this. But you...you do." Shadows swirled around the damaged organ and when they peeled away, they revealed a pitch-black apple. "In magic, hearts are something powerful...and ones that are freely given are even more so. Eat this...and you will become of my heart, my flesh, my power...and you will find a world that you could not even dream of."_

_The Shadow Queen raised her hand and took a bite of the apple, swallowing easily. Liquid that was either juice or blood trickled from the corners her mouth, but she ignored them._

_She extended her hand, offering the apple to him and her voice, though whisper soft, seemed to be as if she was right next to him, right in his ear, speaking to his soul. "Give me your life...and I will give you more than a hundred men could dream of in their lifetimes. Make this oath alongside me and become my shadow..."_

_They stood there, in the blood-red moonlight, he kneeling before her, she standing above him and the promise of their connection hanging between them. A dragon trying to tame a wolf, a wolf testing the strength of dragon, two so like yet dissimilar that they could be naught but be called counterparts._

_He made his choice._

_As he finished, she had but one more pressing question to find an answer to. "What is your name?"_

"I have none." He stood, the wounds and pain from earlier vanishing easily. His eyes had darkened to smoky black and silvery, but still possessed the same feral fire that had charmed her. "I told you, my life was the only thing I owned."

"_Then to mark our oath, I will gift you with a new one." Her lips quirked slightly. "You are to be my shadow. And I will share with you my most precious knowledge..."_

TTTTTTT

"Enjoying your trip down memory lane?" The voice, smooth and guttural at the same time, pulled her from the memories of the past. "I bet they were more fun than your present is about to be."

"I doubt that." Even as she turned to face the speaker, the Queen cast a powerful fireball at him, the shadows in the room being dispersed briefly as it impacted. "Destroying fools who intrude upon my castle and personal time is always something to enjoy."

"I am sure that it is..." The speaker simply strode out of the flames. They were a ragged being of three-dimensional shadow, the edges ragged and flowing like flame. White gaping 'holes' made up their eyes and mouth. "But I am no mere intruder..."

He glanced around at the room. "Such lovely architecture and such a large palace, too...complete with nine levels of horrible dungeons and even a built-in populace to terrorize." The maw that was his mouth twisted in a satisfied smile. "I will take it."

"Bold words. And stupid ones." The Queen flicked out her hand and power lanced form it, smashing into the floor in front of the intruder. It scattered on impact, becoming a maze of energy that linked together in a cage around him. "I do not know how you got in here and frankly, I don't care. You're interrupting something important me." She snapped her fingers and the cage of power shrank, the 'bars' searing through the shadow being like a hot knife through butter. "Die."

"Not likely to happen." The scraps of shadow that flitted about as the cage carved them off simply swarmed together, reforming into a complete being. "Not with that kind of pathetic magic." A sneer formed on that ragged shadow face. "Are you what passes for an all-powerful sorcerer these days?"

"No, I am what passes for a Sorcerer Queen." She vanished in a burst of smoke and then reappeared in five more, surrounding him with duplicates. As once, they raised their palms and each released a different elemental-fire, water, lightning, wind and light. The attacks smashed together in a corona of chaotic energy, sealing him inside. Lightning in a bottle.

Then the real Shadow Queen reappeared in her original spot, wave of her hand causing a pillar of crystalline shadow to swallow the corona and lock it in place, glittering and dark and not speck of light visible within. Another gesture and a wicked-looking sword appeared in her hand as she approached the pillar. "Let's try this again."

"I would still call it a fail." The five duplicates didn't even have time to scream as human-sized, black and red crab-like claws erupted from their shadows and ran them through, scattering them into smoke. From his position of leaning back against the Queen, the intruder laughed. "Wouldn't you?"

Her reaction was instant and perfect, reversing her grip on her sword and driving it behind her with lightning reflexes. But she felt it bite nothing and as she whirled to find where the intruder had gone, she had to throw herself backwards as her own shadow erupted into violently lashing and swirling tendrils.

They cracked through the air towards her, but a few deft moves with her sword severed them neatly. The rest retreated from the wounds, winding together to transform back into the intruder. "So, are you having any fun yet?"

"Plenty." A dramatic sweep of her blade sent a razor-arc of shadow hurtling towards the figure and even as he stretched out a hand to catch it, she vanished. Reappearing next to the pillar she had created, a strike with the flat of her blade shattered it. Before the fragments could hit the floor, they flew off in a chaotic zig-zagging pattern , striking and skipping off the floor and the intruder. As they struck, they morphed into chains, snaring and piercing and binding him.

He just laughed again. "You've tried this twice already. Why do you think a third time will do anything?" his body started to disperse into scraps of shadow, but the chains rattled disapprovingly and energy surged along them, forcing the scraps back together. "How-?"

"I am the Shadow Queen and this is my domain. And it is within these walls that I am at my strongest. The entire palace is a focal point for my power." She approached him casually. "And no matter your strange abilities, a strong enough application of power will crush them." The tip of her sword leveled at his throat. "Entertain me further, fool. Tell me who you are."

"Who am I? Why, I'm you." He chuckled at some joke only he got. "A better you than you could ever be." His head lolled crazily, the white eyes bright and wicked. "My pain is greater than yours."

"Pain?" The blade glowed her dark power and bite into his neck, turning the shadows solid as it passed through them and he actually howled in agony. "You have yet to understand the meaning of the world. But if you're so keen on staying in my Palace, I would be more than happy to introduce you to whole new worlds of it."

"Ehehehehee...yes, you and your palace and your mighty empire..." His chuckling grew, sickly now that her sword was solidly lodged in what comprised of his throat. "What a show it all was, a thousand years ago. To see you and armies and your beloved pet march out and conquer all in the name of 'Shadow."

"You were alive then? Then you should know what happened to those crossed me." A hard look crossed the Queen's face and power danced down the blade, spreading into his body like veins, pulsing and causing him to shriek in pain, the surge leaving him heaving for breath.

The intruder's heaving breaths sped up, becoming another wild laugh. "You...have a talent for giving pain, don't you? But then, you've suffered so much of it..." The white eyes narrowed knowingly. "Being trapped in your own home...the Heroes defeating you...your body being torn apart and reassembled in the very fires of Hell...and...and most of all...watching the only two things you had left in the world get taken away from you and the world didn't even care that they were gone..."

Her reaction was instantaneous, the power flaring through the blade like it where alive. It spread throughout his entire body, spreading to ever single piece. The creature screamed and howled, the screams becoming worse as the energy crystallized, shattering and suffusing what seemed like every centimeter of his being. Still burning and surging with her power.

And despite his howls of pain, the intruder still seemed to find the energy to laugh, to mock and jeer, his head lolling crazily. "When you were being reassembled...tell me...how...many...times...did you...scream their names...begging...them for the strength...to...avenge them...little girl?"

With an angry cry, she grabbed his throat and drew back her other hand. Black fire swirled there, hot and cold at the same time. The very air around it howled in pain at the fireball's existence and she slammed it into the intruder's face with every last ounce of force she could muster.

The resulting explosion gouged a shallow line in the stone, dust, black magic and power scattering everywhere. It tore at her dress and scattered her hair, her sword literally blown away into wisps of shadow. But nothing remained of the intruder.

Nothing...save that echoing laugh that came from everywhere at once. _"Such ferocity for a little girl who once dreamed of power..."_

She growled as she used both her eyes and power to try and find them the source, her frustration mounting as she realized that whatever this thing was, it was able to somehow avoid her total control of the palace. "And such bold words from a coward who hides in the shadows!"

"_Hiding? No, I am not hiding...for I am everywhere, oh queen of shadows..." _The shadows and darkness in the room seemed to pulse and vibrate in time with his words. "_If you profess to be a queen of darkness and shadows, than I am their king."_

"Sorry, but there's one ruler here and I've learned the hard way that it works out much better if that ruler is me." She exerted her power, her form gaining a slow brilliance to it and whatever light was in the room responded, gaining in luminosity and pushing the darkness back, back to mere slivers and patches. "I told you, my power is absolute here!"

"_And I told you, my pain is greater is than yours...you gained your power out of hatred and rage and the cold carelessness of humanity, the pain pushing you further and further...you may hate the world all you like, but I..." _The shadows were nearly gone and then all rushed over the floors and walls, forming into a tall pillar that reformed into the shadow intruder. But it didn't stop there, the body gaining in size and mass, purple muscle tissue forming while blue bone armor clacked and creaked into existence over it. "_I have hated the gods themselves for millennial! I have long surpassed the power of a little girl throwing a tantrum!"_

The Shadow Queen, once upon a time, would have flown into a rage over such an antagonistic statement. But great defeats and imprisonment had taught her caution and restraint. Even as the new being swelled and surged in size, she flung out her hand. Her dress vanished, replaced by form-fitting black armor and a billowing black cape. In her outstretched hand, a twin-bladed glaive appeared and she twirled the weapon expertly before lunging to skewer whatever the intruder was.

But it was just a moment too slow, a massive clawed hand knocking the blow aside. As she skidded back, the intruder stood to his full height, prompting her eyes to widen slightly. Though it was nowhere near the true height she had seen it, the blue-armored demon before her was no less impressive at nearly twenty feet.

Raviel, Lord of Phantasms.

Great wings flared as the intruder rumbled forwards, clenching mighty fingers into an equally mighty fist. "_Hate...pain...they gave birth to my power and I have never stopped hating, never stopped feeling that pain since that moment...I am Armityle!" _He roared and charged, drawing back his fist as blue energy gathered around it. _"And I will shatter the power that only exists in your little-girl dreams!"_

TTTTTT

_Blood was everywhere._

_Almost more blood than should been allowed in a physical being's body._

_It was the first thing the Shadow Queen noticed as she entered the small arena that was but one of the many rooms in the still-under construction Palace of Shadow. _

_Bodies lay scattered about, stacked atop one another or pinned to the floor or ways by the equally numerous weapons. A few were just missing body parts or simply incinerated or just gone._

_And the boy was standing in the center of it all. But he was hardly a boy anymore. Despite no more than sixth months passing since they had taken that oath in that town under that moon, he had become a young man. His body had filled out with lean muscle that currently slick with blood and sweat, a vicious backhand slash with the damaged sword in his hand beheading the last opponent._

"_How long has he been in here?" The question was directed at one of the lesser demons that had led her to this place._

"_Three days, Majesty." The demon replied with a gravelly voice. "The door was not to open unless he was slain or there were no more enemies to fight."_

_She frowned, taking in account the mess of the room. "There are not enough bodies for him to have been fighting here for three days."_

"_There had to be breaks between days, Majesty..." The demon shifted uncomfortably. "There were too many bodies for anyone to fight effectively, so they had to be cleared away."_

_She started for the young man, a simple application of magic parting the bodies and blood and gore in front of her as she walked. "Who ordered this to take place?"_

"_General U'ulgan, Majesty."_

_He turned to her as she approached, tossing aside the broken weapon he held. Like the room, he was covered in blood and she could see a few scars across his torso that seemed to almost cosmetic, judging from how little he seemed to care about them. His black hair was nearly down to his waist, ragged and feral, but did nothing to disguise the look in his eyes she had grown accustomed to. "Do you have an assignment for me, now?"_

"_What are you talking about? Your training was finished just the other day." She scowled. "You were to report to me the moment you were ready. I told you that myself."_

_His eyes were smoky. "U'ulgan called this my final test, to see if I were capable of serving you."_

"_A test of his own initiative." The scowl darkened. It seemed that the general needed to be reminded who was currently employing him. "But you have passed, nonetheless. If there was any reason for him to doubt your skills, they will __be __removed now. And if not, _I _will remove them."_

_She turned to the two demons that had accompanied her. "Go tell the General to prepare his company for march. We are launching our invasion of Grand General Yostel's lands ahead of schedule. A full-out assault." A dark smile. "If he complains, inform him that is a final test, to see if his Company of Malice is capable of living up their reputation."_

_The two demons bow and scurried out of the room as fast as they could while he stepped up closer behind her. "You seek to punish him for the slight against me?"_

_Her hand slapped him across the face as she turned to face him. They both knew the blow hardly hurt, but they both also expected it. As he shook out his hair in reaction, she cupped his face and yanked it around to stare into her eyes. "I punish him for the slight against _me._ You are _mine._ And what is done to you, my shadow, is done to me and I will not have my decisions challenged and my choice tested without my consent."_

_He did not back down from her silvery eyes. "This is your palace and even if it is incomplete, my absence should not have escaped your notice. I am of you." His own eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "You knew U'ulgan would test me."_

"_Of course. If it was not him, it would be another. All of my commanders and leaders lust after the power I bring them. And to put you in a position so close to it was sure to stir their ire." She smirked and tapped his chin with a couple of fingertips. "And thanks to you, I know who to punish and who to spare, for even U'ulgan could have not hid you from me without help."_

"_So I am to be bait for your little traps?" This time, the scowl was on his face._

"_No. Never that. To use you as bait would imply that you would be sacrificed. But I knew you would deal with whatever test they laid for you and now not only has it failed, it has exposed them. If they had killed you, then they would have rid me of something useless. But they did not. Their failure compounds their punishment." The Shadow Queen smiled, darkly confident. "And you would never fail me."_

_It wasn't someone expressing confidence in a belief. It was someone stating a fact._

_He nodded. "I will never fail you."_

"_Then it is as it should be." She wrinkled her nose. "You smell of death and filth. Clean yourself, rest and bring yourself to me. There is much I have need of you for."_

_He dipped his head to her. "It shall be as you say. Always...as you say."_

TTTTTTT

"You're dead, Crump! DEAD!"

Vladimir, lounging on a bench in one of the larger rooms of the Palace, lifted his gaze from his book just in time to see Lord Crump come skidding around the corner like the hounds of hell were on his tail. And given that the shouting voice was that of his sister, Maria, it was a rather apt analogy.

The blue-haired Shadow Spawn appeared in the doorway before Crump had made it halfway across the room. A towel was wrapped around her to preserve her modesty, but otherwise she was bare and soaking wet. The look on her face was utterly livid. "Come back here so I can murder you!"

"I said I was sorry!" Crump shouted over his shoulder as he didn't slow down. "The Queen keeps rearranging the Palace and doesn't tell me about it! Yesterday, that was the wine cellar!"

"And now it's my personal bathroom! And now I'm going to kill you!" Maria raced after him, cursing and swearing as the two disappeared out another door.

Vladimir watched them go and then returned to his book, Maria's shouting still audible despite the distance they were putting between themselves and him.

"You know what's great about drowning, Crump? It means I can revive you and kill you again!" A heavy crash. "Come back here and die with indignity!"

The Heir of Shadow turned a page in his book calmly. He knew that, with their mother busy tonight, he would have to intervene. Crump was an important idiot, so he'd have to save him from Maria's wrath.

Eventually.

However, he had hardly gotten through a half page when he noticed there was another presence in the room. A magical one and one he knew fairly well.

And fairly well disliked.

He lowered the book enough so his sunglass-covered eyes could peer over the top. "You're lost again, aren't you?"

The question was addressed to the rather fluffy white cat that was sitting on the other arm of the couch. It flicked an ear at him and then twitched its whiskers a couple of times.

"Well, forget it, I'm not helping you." He raised the book. "Every time you show up, Mother winds up either rather upset for the next several days. Or she is in such a good mood that it's frightening. So rather than make it a toss-up between moods, you can just stay lost and suffer her wrath yourself."

Silence reigned for the next few minutes and then Shadow Spawn sighed, lowering the book to find the cat moved to settle on his knees, its violet eyes just a few inches away and almost cartoonishly big and wide and watery. "Go away, you mangy piece of fleabait."

"Vladimir!" Melissa's voiced scolded him as she appeared seemingly out of nowhere and plucked the cat from his knees. "How can you be so rude to such an adorable kitty?!" She hugged the cat defensively.

"Because that 'adorable kitty' is _him_."

"Oh." The Shadow Spawn of Light glanced down at the cat in her arms, who seemed to somehow give her a cheeky smile. "I totally forgot he could do that."

She dropped the cat and stepped back, flinging a blot of light at it. "BURN!"

The cat seemingly vanished as the bolt of light smashed into it and the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. But then a hand waved away the dust, revealing a tall silver-haired man dressed in a flamboyant red and green trenchcoat, his kitty ears and tail twitching slightly. "You know, every time I come here, I always hope you will all be just a bit more hospitable than the last time, but nooooo. You're all still the same obnoxious runts you've always been."

He didn't even bother to look afraid as Melissa hurled a few more bolts of light at him, which he casually knocked away with the back of his hand. "And yes, let's throw light at the interdimensional magical librarian. Because that is _such_ a original tactic."

He tapped the last one with a finger and it zipped back along its original course, causing Melissa to yelp and duck. "I honestly don't know what I've done to deserve it."

"Your fashion sense is horrible enough that it makes you think that dressing up as a Christmas tree counts as looking good, Adrian." Vladimir supplied. "I'm pretty sure there's an Arcadian law against something like that."

Adrian rolled his eyes. "Right. Sure." He glanced between the two Shadow Spawn. "Now your mom and I have our thing tonight and I'm already late. Considering no one is happy if she's not happy, I'd think it's in your best interests to help me find her."

Melissa glowered at him for a long moment, before a sly smile crept on her face. "I can tell you where she is...but what are you going to give me if I tell you?"

"Give you? Excuse me?" The Librarian turned his full attention on her. "I shouldn't have to give you anything. I'm a guest. Haven't you ever heard of hospitality?"

"You're an _uninvited _guest." She folded her arms stubbornly. "I don't know why Mom tolerates you at all, but we don't have to and if you want anything from us besides time in a cell down below, you'll cough up!"

He gave her a sharp look. "You're a little thug, you know that, right?" Seeing the stubborn set in her jaw, he sighed and lifted part of his coat and started rummaging around in an interior pocket. "Threatening me with jail time...good lord, you're almost as bad as Vladimir was when he was younger."

"C'mon already." The blonde tapped her foot impatiently and held out her hand.

"Hold your horses. It's not like I carry an entire sweet shop on my person!" Adrian protested as he switched sides of his coat. "I don't usually expect to be shaken-down by fourteen-year olds when I go places!"

Vladimir flipped a page on his book. "You might want to hurry up, Librarian. I do believe he knows you're here already."

"Oh no..." Adrian hastened his search for a bribe. "I really don't want to deal with-"

"FOUND YOU!" The door to the room banged and Leopold stormed into the room, an almost malevolent smile on his face and a chess set tucked under his arm. "This time, we're going to settle it once and for all!"

"-him." Ears wilting to go along with his sigh, the Librarian buried his face in his palm. "What a night this is turning out to be."

"I can get rid of him for you." Melissa said with that grin on her face. "Just cost you a little extra."

"Oh no, Melissa." Leopold pushed his glasses up his nose slightly. "Neither he nor I are going anywhere until we settle the-"

An explosion of water cut off the conversation as it shoved open another door and spilled a water-logged Crump. He spluttered and stumbled to his feet, slipping and sliding frantically through the water.

Maria stormed through the door, water twisting and snaking around her like a living river as she gathered up a sphere of it in her upraised hand. "Any last words?"

Crump was too busy coughing up water to reply.

Vladmir vanished into Melissa's shadow and reappeared out of Maria's, grabbing her wrist. "You can't kill him, Maria. You know he's important and stupid as he is, Mom tolerates his presence."

Maria huffed and glared at her older brother. "Let me drown him once, at least! We can bring him back, I'll even do it myself, I promise!" She returned her gaze to Crump malevolently. "He's got that big empty space between his ears, anyway. Why not fill it with something?"

"I said 'no'." The Heir of Shadow said tersely. To emphasis his point, a tendril of shadow snaked up and wrapped around Maria's water sphere, dispersing it easily.

"Dammit..." Stamping her foot in frustration, the Water Shadow Spawn settled for glaring daggers at Crump. Wrenching her arm free of Vladimir's grasp, she stalked off towards another door.

She had just about reached it when Adrian was suddenly in front of her, a sweep of his arm throwing her on her back. "What the hell!? You pervert cat, you nearly got rid of my towel!" Water droplets rose into the air and began to merge into a large sphere to bash his head in...

That's when she caught sight of why Adrian had thrown her aside. The door she had been walking to had been shredded apart and the Librarian was standing in the spot she had been in, his left hand had caught the large claw that would skewered her torso. "What the hell is that!?"

"Offhand, I'd say it's a Phantasm Token." Adrian pulled on the claw, a roar of pain sounding as he simply tore the offending arm off. A second later, it burst into blood and shadows. A second after that, the doorway simply gave way as a six ten-foot monstrosities pushed through. They were mostly blue, with proportional-sized wings and oversized arms. The looks on their demonic faces was definitely angry. "They look like baby Raviels. Definitely Phantasm Token."

The one missing its arm lunged for him, but he simply slid around the claw swipe lazily. Two quick blows to its chest blew out much larger holes than he should have reasonably been able to make. It toppled backwards as it dissolved away into shadow and blood.

The Shadow Spawn watched as Adrian slaughtered the Tokens. Glimmers of light marked the path of his claws and an instant later, great tears would open in the beings that nearly tore them in half. A scything kick did cleave one in two and the Librarian shattered another's head with an elbow strike without looking.

From the time the Tokens has stormed through the doorway to the time the last of them was collapsing to the ground, streaming blood and shadow from its wounds was approximately thirty seconds.

"Well, tonight just got interesting." Adrian cocked his head as a suddenly tremor shook rooms, followed by two very powerful explosions. "And I do believe that's where your mother is."

Roars echoed as more and more Phantasm Tokens began to pour into the room, a portion of the ceiling giving way as they ripped through the stone to get at their prey. "Huh, I can't recall the last time the Palace was this badly invaded..."

Maria scowled as she and her siblings backed together, Crump cowering in the middle of the group. "Who the hell is stupid enough to try and take over our home!?" She snapped her fingers and the water around her reacted, become a razor-sharp tendril that scythed the nearest token's head off. "And where are these things coming from!?"

"Mom has been summoning Duel Spirits to use in the Tournament, but she would not summon these things at all." Leopold stomped his foot on the floor and it shuddered, the stone morphing into spikes that skewered a trio of tokens from head to foot. "But I do not believe they are Duel Spirits, they seem more like...like..."

"Like some type of golem." Melissa smashed a glowing fist through a token's outstretched claw, tearing the fingers off before punching a hole through its chest with a beam from her palm.

"It doesn't matter where they came from or what they are." Vladimir watched as the tokens own shadows sprang to life, blades emerging from them to rip their owners apart. "We're going to destroy them all and then help Mom defeat whoever is behind this!"

"Oh, no." Adrian shook his head as they all took a moment to look at him. "This one's a bit out of your weight class, kids. Leave it to the grown-ups." Another tremor shook the room. "Now, if you'll excuse me..."

They watched as he simply tore his way through the tokens pushing through the hole in the ceiling, the air surrounding him thick with blood and shadow and strolling along as if he was walking in the park.

Melissa suppressed a shudder and returned to incinerating the tokens one by one. "That guy is too strong...he's a monster..."

TTTTTTT

"_You look like a monster."_

_Slumped as he was against the tree, the hard rain soaking him and pain and aches that were far more than physical wracking every fiber of his being, he somehow managed to find the strength to lift his head enough to look at her._

_The Shadow Queen stood over him, simply ignoring the cold rain that would have had a mortal shivering and running for cover. The rain simply vanished when it touched, as if it was afraid of incurring her wrath by getting her wet._

_He felt something run down his face and wasn't entirely sure if it was water or blood. "Apologies..." He lifted shifted weakly, feeling the half-formed wings jutting out of his back unfurl slightly. His left arm had been taken over as well, now clawed and slowly becoming covered in...something. His right eye was completely blood-red and his hair was crystalline and darker than normal. "...if this form displeases you."_

_A dismissive noise. "The hair is interesting, to say the least. I may decide I like it." Her eyes narrowed. "I cannot say that I like you right now."_

"_You do not like cowardice...I understand..." Every word was a mouthful of effort and it took what strength he had to keep that second self inside him suppressed._

_She backhanded him across the face. "You do not understand! Were it cowardice, I would strike you dead where you lay!"_

_Rage spent for the moment, she returned to her glower. "Do you think me stupid? Do you think me weak? That I would not know what had happened, that I would not be prepared for that possibility?" A hand wrenched his face up so that she could be sure he was looking her in the eyes. "Do you!?"_

"_I do not...think you weak...only...your enemies...strong." Sweat, blood and rain poured down his brow, but his eyes were unwavering. "Yostel's spirit is...strong...and ancient..."_

"_Nothing less to be expected of a Grand General." She tipped his head a bit, examining one of the wounds he had received. "Why do you think I sent you, my shadow? I knew that when she was defeated, she would possess the one who killed her in an attempt to get close to me. But you would be strong enough to resist the possession until I arrived to extract and destroy her utterly."_

_She let his head drop with a noise of disgust. "And yet you flee out into the woods, fearing her power and hoping to protect me, like a wounded animal finding a cave to die in!"_

"_No!" The force of his voice surprised her and what's more, he lurched to his feet. His eyes flashed as he spoke. "I swore my life...to you! Do not...ever say that I would...throw it away!" _

_The Queen's eyes were cool, like metal. Waiting for an explanation to a question she did not have to ask for him to understand._

"_You asked for victory..." His body jerked in pain as his wings forced more of themselves out and a black liquid began to trickle from the corner of his mouth. "For me to defeat...your enemies."_

_His strength vanished, pitching him to all fours as blood and shadowy liquid poured of his mouth. Bone creaked and groaned as the wings grew further, unfurling. "Yet...victory...cannot...come...through strength...of arms...alone..."_

_Her eyes widened slightly. "You let her possess you...to gain her ability to use magic."_

"_Yes." The hair make a noise like the hum of a crystal as it spread down his back, spiking and glittering in the rain. "But..."_

_He threw his head back and screamed as energy surged around his form, crackling and lashing out to tear chunks of the ground and nearby trees. Skin and muscle split everywhere, blood streaming freely. For a moment, the Queen could see the second spirit inside him, overlain with his body as it sought to finalize its control. Then it was gone and another howl split the air as he clawed violently at the ground, leaving it streaked with blood. A physical response to an enemy he could not kill a second time._

_If it kept up, his body would be destroyed before any victor could be decided._

"_Enough." Though her voice was soft, it was nearly cold enough to freeze the rain around her. "I will not see you in this pain. And I will not have what is mine stolen from me."_

_She reached for him, laying her hand atop his head. His hair, despite its crystal look, was soft and almost silken. He shivered at the contact, but his body stopped thrashing and the sound save for the rain was his harsh and ragged breathing. "Focus, my shadow...if your power is insufficient, then you have naught but to ask for mine."_

"_H-how...I...I cannot..." He gripped the earth, hacking up something that was not quite blood or shadow. "Do...magic!"_

"_My power is still yours." She removed her hand from his head and turned her arm to expose her wrist to him._

_He stared at the pale skin for a moment, baring his newfound fangs for a moment before shifting his gaze to her._

"_Yes." She confirmed to his unspoken question. "You have won my favor several times for your victory for me this day. It is only proper that your Queen returns the debt."_

_Despite the pain he seemed to be in, he dipped his head to her and then sank his fangs into her arm sharply. She did not react or flinch, merely watched as he drank for an almost endless moment._

_Then he fell back, her power flooding his veins and heart and darkening his eyes to pitch black. His whole body seemed to shudder as his shadow thrashed and twisted. It changed shape and color, becoming a vague silvery-white humanoid out that seemed to be screaming in silent agony. Then tendrils of black crept along its surface, swallowing it whole before return to the shape of its caster._

_He toppled forwards into the muddy ground, completely spent and unable to feel anything but the cold in his body that was not from just the rain. "She is...subsumed..."_

"_Good. You have done well today. Far more than I could have expected." She paused slightly, realizing that he had passed out and could not hear her. Then she continued, her voice soft and almost tender. "Rest and I will purge you of the wounds and changes that you have suffered. For when you wake, your Queen will have need of you. As I always will."_

_Her shadow spilled out from around her, swallowing them both up so that it could take them home..._

TTTTTTT

A sphere of blue light collided with a sphere of smoky black shadow and an explosion roared out from the contact, sending out shockwaves the cracked and split the stone amphitheater.

Then they flew apart, the shadowy sphere flying apart to reveal the Shadow Queen skidding along the now uneven terrain before catching herself with the tip of end of her broken glaive. Her armor was cracked everywhere and one arm's worth was simply gone. Smoke trailed off her body and her breathing was hard, little sparks of power still dancing around her body from the clash.

Armityle emerged from his sphere, violently crashing against the stands and shaking the room with the impact. As their room to fight had increased, so had his size until he was Raviel's full size. Not that it had done him much good. Great slash marks covered his entire body, his right knuckles having a 'X'-carved into them where the Queen had crossed her broken weapon to block a mighty punch. His left arm gone, the limb itself elsewhere in room. And one wing was simply sheared off halfway. _"Impressive...to be a shadow of your former self and sealed in this palace, yet to be so strong."_

"When one has a thousand years of time on their hands, it isn't that hard to master new skills." The Queen lifted her weapons in a cross. "Are you going to submit now or will I have the pleasure of erasing you from existence entirely?"

He laughed his eerie laugh as he pulled his massive body onto its feet, his lost limb hardly troubling him. _"Submit to you? I would kneel in acknowledgment of your battle skill, little girl, but I would find it difficult to avoid squashing you in the process."_ His fist clenched and rose in the air, his blood in the room glowing and changing. "_You are an ant challenging a dragon!"_

The Queen watched as his blood morphed into nearly two dozen Phantasm Tokens, the entire horde roaring and surging for her from all angles. "More of these pathetic things? Your power seems limited to only annoying me, Armityle."

Her blades flashed, slicing easily through the two closet ones and then she spun, a fireball leaping off the tip of one. It smashed into a Token sneaking up behind her, hurling it off its feet and enveloping it flames. As it screeched in agony, she dashed through the nearest crowd of the monsters. Limbs and blood and shadow flew into the air as she sliced them to ribbons, the last one sliced into three neat pieces from a dual-vertical slash.

Then the defeated Tokens reformed, their great hands snaring her by the arms, legs and waist. "What!?"

"_These beasts are spawned from my blood, my power and it is their lifeblood. So long as they remain close to me, they cannot be slain." _Armityle took a few lumbering steps towards her, an energy sphere charging up in front of his mouth. "_You claim immortality as well...let us see how long that lasts!" _The sphere doubled in size.

"Longer than you will!" A violet sphere of power slammed into Armityle's, causing it to explode prematurely and the psuedo-deity roared in agony and surprise. The room shook as he fell back again, half of his face crumbling or burnt away.

The Queen recognized that voice and she scowled as bookmarks lodged themselves into the bodies of her captors. A moment later, the bookmarks glowed and exploded violently, shattering the Tokens like clay pots. "You're late!"

"A good spellcaster is neither late nor early, my dear." Adrian strode through the smoking remains of the tokens, twirling a bookmark between his fingers and a smile on his face. "He arrives precisely on time to make a truly epic entrance."

"_The only thing epic about you will be your death, fool!"_ Armityle roared in rage and stormed his feet, his remaining sweeping up the remaining tokens and crushing them with a squeeze. They transformed into bloody mists that billowed over his wounds, restoring his face and arm. Slamming both fists together, energy gathered around them as he charged the pair.

"Whoops, time to go!" Adrian hooked an arm around the Queen's waist and leapt clear of the giant fist that shattered the floor and then the floor below as a beam of power erupted from the impact.

Landing on the stands, Adrian skipped from level to level in a zig-zagging pattern as the giant's fists rained blow upon blow after them, the sheer power of the blows knocking out the next room's walls and floor. Then he skidded to a stop as one smashed through the stands in front of them and then the other arm knifed into the stands behind them, that monstrous visage looming front of them and charging up another ball of energy. "_Evade this, insects!"_

"How about you die instead?" The Queen pulled herself free of Adrian's grasp, the Librarian producing a violet-crystal blade with a flourish. Dark shadows poured over her glaives, transforming into blades nearly double the length of the real ones. She launched herself off the stands, Adrian not a moment behind her.

Light flashed as her blades struck, but Armityle's scream was lost as a violet explosion erupted on his chest. The Queen landed gracefully while Adrian merely skidded to a stop next to her, his blade still flaring with energy his attack had used. They both turned to see the results of their attack.

Armityle, two thirds of his head completely missing and a gaping hole in his chest, slumped and sagged forwards into the stone as his body began to dissolve away into dust.

"Who the heck was that?" Adrian rested his weapon over his shoulder easily, dusting off his pants with his other hand.

"He called himself Armityle, but he fought and used powers like no Duel Spirit I have ever seen." The Queen planted both of her glaives into the floor and with a thought, scattered her damaged armor into wisps of shadow. That done, she fixed her guest with a flashing silver glare. "Now explain to me why you are so late, Librarian!"

"Hey, I was actually on time this time! Just...took a wrong turn and got lost..." His tail tip twitched in irritation. "Your brats weren't much help, either. Melissa tried to shake me down."

"Hmmph." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Idiot child. You're so poor that she'd have lucky to get the lint in your pockets."

"I'm happy to see you, too." Adrian said dryly. "Not to mention, I did just save your life."

"Which is the only reason I'm not simply venting the rest of my rage at how horrible this night is turning out by sheathing my weapons in your body." The Queen folded her arms and gave him a look that could freeze water. "So what are you going to do to make this up?"

"...cook dinner?" Adrian shrugged, the action looking oddly casual in comparison to his tail tip twitching excitedly.

"You were going to do that anyway." She pointed out and then scowled as she caught sight of the actions his tail was taking. Her eyebrow started to twitch. "You utter lech..."

"What? Huh?" He tucked his tail behind himself. "No, wait! It's not my fault that you folding arms about makes your humanly impossible rack nearly pop out of your...top..." He whitened considerably as he realized the great extent to which he had sealed his fate.

A thunderclap echoed and then the Librarian was a twitching mass of limbs and fur on the ground, little black sparks crackling around him while the Queen dusted her hands off themselves. "That was rather therapeutic."

"Not many people supplement a slap with a bolt of lightning..." His body twitched feebly in protest to his attempts to breath. "...ow..."

The Queen sneered and opened her mouth to make a snide remark, but it became a snarl surprise as a black mist suddenly swallowed her up. "You dare-!?"

"_It is just another little girl dream to think you could defeat me so easily." _Armityle's voice hissed in her ear as the mist swirled around her, drawing tighter and tighter. _"My hatred springs eternal and unfortunately for you, you are among the things I despise!_"

The mist had nearly obscured her completely from view, tendrils of it binding her limbs together. Despite this, there was still enough space for her to see the massive head the interior of the tornado formed in front of her. _"You will scream for inside your own body for all time, insect! And I will relish in your agony!"_

The head opened its 'mouth' and dove towards her, looking as it was ready to swallow her face whole. But the moment it reached her, the necklace around her neck began to shin with unholy light and Armityle screeched in surprise as the black light surged outwards, scattering the mists around her like they were a morning fog.

"Pathetic wretch, do you honestly feel that a pale shadow of a being like you could hope to posses me?" She chuckled at him as the mists gathered again and dove straight for her in a second attempt, but as before, the light simply scattered it. A slim finger tapped the necklace. "Stronger than you have tried to do so or something similar, but all have failed. You would never be able to get past the enchantments protecting me from such weak tricks, let alone surpass my will in strength."

"_Just because the insect has a hard shell, doesn't mean __it's__ any harder for the dragon to crush it!"_ The mists doubled in size and snaked together, becoming an endless giant serpentine figure that was just as thick as a bus. The shadows at the top began to flake away, revealing the blood-crimson colored and black jaw of Uria, Lord of Searing Flames. He opened his maw, the darkness of his throat lit up by an inferno of fire. "_Or to incinerate! Hyper Blaze!"_

The air seemed to burn as the flames shot forth, but the Queen merely teleported out of the way and reappeared on the stands behind him. But before she could do anything, Armityle's tail burst free from the stone and snared her in its strong coils. A simple squeeze prevented the magic she was about to perform and he roared, bringing his head around to stare at her. Flames were already leaking out of his mouth. _"You will not be going anywhere!"_

There was a whistling sound and then the being let out a noise of pain as one of her glaives lodged itself into the coils and then light flashed as Adrian's sword and the second spun through air. They glanced off his face, knocking it aside enough so that his attack merely punched a hole in the wall. Adrian himself appeared in mid-air, catching his whirling blade. Violet power surged around his arm and then dove into the blade, sheathing it and making the blade nearly as large as its wielder. "You're getting pretty annoying!"

Light flashed as the Librarian hammered away with his weapon, scoring lines and gashes over Armityle's face as the Queen slid free of the coils and grabbed her weapon. Slitting her palm, she squeezed out the blood onto the shadow cast by Armityle and her eyes glowed as she said something incomprehensible to human ears.

"_You are like a lightning bug-pretty, but ultimately frail." _Armityle's slender claws snared Adrian and knocked his blade free. His reptilian body smoked and bled bits of shadow from the ultimately shallow wounds he had been dealt. _"But I thank you__ – __the pain you have given me will make me enjoy your death all the more."_

A new roar overwrote his own as a pitch-black version of Uria came out of nowhere and sank its fangs into his neck. Armityle screeched in pain and dropped the Librarian as he lashed his tail around to knock his new attacker away. The two dopplegangers collided and snapped at each other, twisting and dodging the way only serpents could.

Adrian felt the Queen teleport next to his falling form and then another burst of shadow took them a safe distance away. He groaned and hugged his ribs tenderly. "Thanks for the save..."

"I repay my debts. And I would rather save the lesser of two annoyances." She watched as the two Uria locked claws and grappled, pushing and straining against one another. Their heads were high up enough that they gouged lines out of the ceiling, sending great chunks of it tumbling down. "So how do we destroy him permanently?"

"Not quite sure..." Adrian's hands glowed for a moment and then he stood taller, his injuries gone. "If he's living off of hatred, it should have killed him long ago, but it looks like he doesn't have a physical body. We may just have to find a way to contain him."

"I would rather not do that. Powerful as he is, someone may be stupid enough to attempt to free him for one reason or another and my Palace has received enough damage as it is." She shifted her gaze away from the fight as Adrian put a hand on her shoulder as she felt the warm softness of healing magic washing over her. "Do that again and you will lose that hand."

"Uh-huh, yeah, you sure know how to appreciate me healing you." He chucked, his ears twitching slightly. "'Sides, last I checked, you _like _my hands on you."

Deciding that any response she had in mind would only further his obnoxiousness, she decided to change the subject. "Do you know anything about him?'

"Can't say that I do. I do know the Sacred Beasts have no Duel Spirit themselves – they're the exact opposite in some respects, given how they essentially ate the card game the first time they were summoned after being freed." He fished around in his coat, producing a slender volume with a single bookmark inserted about half through it. Opening it, he started flipping through the pages and then plucked a quill attached to the book via a string from the spine. Scrawling something on a page, he snapped the book shut and returned it to his coat. "Give my Codex an hour or so and it should have the information from the Library we need."

Her lips became a thin, yet elegant line of displeasure. "An hour from now, he could have wrecked much of the Palace."

"This place is literally the size of a mountain and pretty much entirely magical – it'll fix itself." He sighed as she kept looking sternly at him. "Don't say it – I know if you had that sword, you'd be much better off and probably able to kill him with it."

"I'd be able to kill him if I were free and at full power." She snapped at him, her glare growing sharper as the tremors and rumblings from the fight sent more pieces of stone crashing down. "But you gave _him_ that sword and helped him ruin my escape attempt! If I had my original six heirs, we could kill him, but you helped _him_ defeat them!"

"And _you_ stole that spell from my books!" He snapped back. "You _knew_ what that spell would do! How did you expect me to react!? Wanting your freedom or not, there are other ways to do it!" His eyes narrowed. "But none of them were as easy as trying to get Smithy to help you, were they? Even though you knew he would turn on you!"

"I took your warnings into consideration when I developed the plan and would have dealt with him when the time came."

"Smithy was too dangerous! Even if you didn't steal that spell from my books, making a deal with him would have caused more than enough trouble for both dimensions and I had to get involved! I know you can't travel between them, but I can and believe me when I say that there was more to what he was doing than helping you!" The Librarian and the Queen glared at each other for a moment. "At least I am sincere when I try to help you."

"Then you are a fool to think that such a thing would mean anything to me." The Queen turned away from him, watching as her shadow duplicate took a faceful of flames.

"It meant something to you when your Champion was at your side." He folded his arms. "I can still sense his presence lingering in this place, even after so long. So why not use your magic and summon him to aid you once more?"

Anger flashed and she looked ready to hit him again, but thought better of it. "I do not want to." There almost hesitation in her voice. "I do not want him to...leave again..."

A white eyebrow was cocked in surprise at this, but Adrian could give no voice to it as they were suddenly moving, he leaping aside and her teleporting away as a Hyper Blaze bored through the wall where they were, knifing along the remains of the stands and wall in an attempt to catch them.

The Queen reappeared atop a pile of rubble, a hastily flung bolt of power missing the tip of Armityle's tail as he dove through the floor. Adrian's own blast of energy missed as well and he scowled as he stepped through the remains of her dissolving shadow copy. "Where is he going?"

She closed her eyes for a moment, extending her senses out into the Palace. It was easy to feel Armityle literally burrowing his way through the countless floors of her home. "He's headed down. And I cannot trap him. He's too big to try and rearrange the rooms to make them endless."

Moving to Adrian's side in a burst of shadow, she watched as he peered over the lip of the giant hole. "We are about three-fourths up the way of the mountain. Even at his size, it will take him some time to reach the bottom."

"Why go down, though? Is he headed for the vault?" The Librarian cast a glance at her necklace. "You may be the only one able to get into it, but I doubt several hundred feet of rock will even slow him down."

"No...I moved the vault to the top of the mountain. Anything of value is far away from he is, as well." She scoffed. "He must just be trying to escape."

"Then he'd be moving horizontally, not vertically. It's quicker to go through the side of the mountain." Then his eyes widened slightly. "He's going for the prison levels!"

"Why would he do that? There isn't anyone in them worthwhile." Then she frowned as she realized something. "Except..."

"Except whatever you intend the ninth level for." He caught her eye. "Even I don't know what's in there. Is it anything he can take advantage of?"

"I don't know. I highly doubt it, but he has proven very odd and resourceful. I will not gamble on him being unable to do anything." She watched as Adrian backed away from the hole. "What are you doing?"

"You cut him off at the pass, I'll make sure that overgrown iguana doesn't pull a fast one and make a sudden U-turn. If he gets into the vault, we're both screwed." With that he, he flipped off the edge of the chasm, his trenchcoat morphing into a pair of solid-state wings as he did so.

The Queen watched him go and then shadows rose up around to teleport her to her desired location. Though she would not admit aloud, it was nice to have some competent help for once.

TTTTTT

"_There is no help coming for you now."__ A massive mailed hand grabbed__ an almost too-small cup of wine from the proffered tray. "Your age is over, woman."_

"_A bold proclamation." The Shadow Queen stood in the center of the platform, a teal seal woven beneath her feet. Every so often, waves of light would wash over the barrier it projected around and in unison, sparks of crackling energy would weave down her body and vanish into the teal light below. "But it is perhaps one that is best saved until you have won, General Hagul."_

"_I have won and it is 'King Hagul' now." The speaker was a mountain of a man, covered from neck to foot in heavy blue dragon-scale plate armor. It should have weighed several times his own weight, yet he moved as it were nothing but cloth. "You are powerless in the center of my stronghold, your army has been crushed and your Empire is now mine."_

"_It is not yours until I am dead."_

"_You might as well be." The general gestured to the magic surrounding her before downing the goblet's contents in one swallow. "Though I do not know why the Orichalcos does not steal your soul like it has all the others, it is still draining away your magical essence. In a short while, you will be nothing but an ordinary, yet beautiful, woman." He chuckled at the thought. "Perhaps I will grant you the privilege of entertaining me before I hand you over to the men."_

"_I promise you, that the only thing that will be entertaining here will be your oncoming death and I may just grant you the privilege of a swift one if you beg enough." The Queen replied regally, eyes as cold as ice._

"_Bark all you like, bitch, you are naught but a dog in a cage." Hagul seemed more amused than bothered by her threat. He gestured around them. They were situated in the center courtyard of the massive stone structure. Dozens, if not hundreds of soldiers in gleaming armor manned the walls, which were backed by ballista and catapults upon the towers. The courtyard itself had four massive golems surrounding the execution platform, nearly twenty feet tall with six great arms and four faces on their heads._

_The general himself was flanked by two smaller statues of himself, both armed with the giant two-headed axes that had made him so feared in combat. Near his right-hand side was a man swathed in robes, all his features save his gleaming blue eyes hidden by them. She assumed he was a magic-user of some sort, as it had been who countered her abilities when the General ambushed her caravan and he who had used this...Orichalcos...to trap her._

"_My fortress is the most fortified in all of your Empire and it would several armies worth of men that you do not have to stand a hope of cracking my walls." Hagul settled back in his throne confidently._

"_I do not need an army, General." The Queen seemed just as confident as he did, if not more so. "All I need is one man to destroy you and your castle utterly."_

_He laughed. "You mean that dog that has been at your heels for the last ten years? A bodyguard or a pet, I was never quite sure what he was." A dismissive wave. "What can he do? Even his rumored skill and magic cannot compete against my army and my sorcerers. Falnaught reports that when his army secured your Palace, he did not even stay to defend it, but fled! And even that failed, for his magicians and warriors made short work of him."_

_Falnaught was involved as well? She had expected traitors within her ranks, but two of her Generals was not something she had considered... Tucking the thought away, she fixed her captor with a mildly amused look. "You underestimate somehow whom I have bestowed my favor upon, General. He is not a pet nor a bodyguard nor a plaything, but my shadow. His loyalty to me is absolute and there is not a thing, living or dead, that will stop him from reaching my side."_

_The General just laughed again. "You expect him to simply ignore the fact he is dead, come riding out of the gates hell on a living nightmare and storm my castle just like that, do you?"_

"_Yes, General Hagul." The Queen's smile was utterly ruthless and so eager for something violent that the General flinched in fear. "That is precisely what I expect to happen."_

_As if summoned by her words, the gate to the courtyard exploded inwards in a flash of black fire. And charging out of the smoke on a midnight-black unicorn, its hooves wreathed in silvery fire that made up its mane and tail, brimstone and shadow trailing off him like streamers, was her shadow. Katana in hand, he flashed past the nearest group of guards and blood filled the air along with their heads._

_And behind him, battle cries and roars were heard as the shadows that filled the gate began to peel back, revealing row upon row of charging members of the Company of Malice and demons and soldiers of all sorts, pouring into the courtyard endlessly._

"_Teleportation...!" The General snarled as he realized that the rumor he had heard about the Palace of Shadow was prove true in the worst of ways. With a gesture, the men surrounding the execution platform closed ranks to form a wall of armor and blades while at the same time teams of guards began to swarm in from all the entrances. "Crush the invaders! Send them back to hell!"_

_The Queen watched as her shadow came straight for the platform, his mount's speed and power smashing aside any he did not cut down or crush with his magic. As he reached the line of pikemen forming the last barrier, the unicorn did not slow down, but sped up. Just as it reached the pikes, it suddenly veered to the side as its rider flipped himself off it and up over the pikes to the platform._

_The guards surrounding her prison barely had time to get their hands on their weapons before he slew them. Sparks and energy flew as he landed a blow that could have cut a boulder in two on the Seal. But the blade failed to penetrate and a second blow produced a similar result._

"_A bold attempt, boy. But that barrier cannot be broken by the sword." Hagul smiled as the two statues behind him glowed briefly, their limbs creaking and cracking as they stepped down from their pedestals. "The same, however, cannot be said for you."_

_Prismatic hair trailing behind him like a streamer of flame, he did not hesitate for an instant. Avoiding the blow would have taken his head and letting it grind against the barrier, he used it as a stepping stone to vault himself up and over the statue's head. Light glimmered as three swift blows decapitated the statue. He spun as he landed, a two-handed strike that gouged a line of rock from the back._

_The statue merely turned around, the axe-leading the way. A hasty block saved his limbs, but sent him sprawling across the length of the platform. Then metal ground on metal as the second statue slammed its weapon down, the queen's shadow bracing his sword with his free arm desperately. The two weapons rattled as their owners exerted their full might before the axe won out and sheared through the katana's blade._

_But the axe simply tore through the platform's planks as he teleported behind the statue. Magic licked around his fingertips and then ice swallowed the statue an instant later. But it didn't hold, shattering as the statue rotated to face him. Fire and lightning impacted harmlessly against the stone and he had to desperately roll over the Seal's dome to avoid another crushing blow._

_Hagul watched as the two statues forced him to the edge the platform, nearly within range of stabbing distance of the soldier's pikes. Then he chuckled as the man side-stepped an axe strike, the blow crushing the edge of the platform and unbalancing the statue enough that it toppled off into his men below. A second later, ice coated the planks under the headless statue's feet and with quick teleport and punishing blow to the back, it too toppled into the ground below. "Clever, but futile. That will not stop them for long and you are hardly without enemies."_

_At his nod, the sorcerer next to him suddenly caved in on himself, sand erupting out of his clothing everywhere. The living mass spun and swirled towards the Queen's shadow, tendrils that were as hard as steel lashing out endlessly, only the man's desperate dodging and insane reflexes keeping him from being pulverized._

_The Queen watched as he slid behind her prison, letting the seemingly impenetrable magic flash as it absorbed several blows. Despite the barrier, she could still feel the sharp chill in the air as he countered with ice magic, sealing several chunks of sand to the barrier. Then the living sand simply flowed over it in a wave, slamming into him and washed him into the crowd of soldiers below._

"_You do not cry or flinch in fear for him?" Hagul stepped up beside the Seal, watching as the soldiers and one of the statues swarmed around him, only rapid teleports keeping him from getting mobbed utterly, but the wall of sand would not let him get too far. "Your last hope is going to be extinguished and yet you watch it as if it were a play. Truly, you are as cold as the shadows you proclaim to rule."_

"_Fear for him, General?" A cold chuckle as down below, he had somehow gotten his hands on a sword. Blood, metal and limbs flew and splattered as sharpened wind ripped from the sword's edge with every swing. But the sheer density of his attackers blunted every strike as well. "Fear would imply that I believe he can fail."_

"_He already has." The general sneered and swept out an arm to encompass the courtyard. The crowd of would-be rescuers had been backed into a small circle, overwhelmed by the sheer number of enemies and fire they were taking from the walls. Even Ul'ugan had been backed into a corner by two of the golems, his fight more about surviving than defeating them. "This farce of a rescue is over!"_

_Shadow and earth exploded in a ring around him, scattering his attackers skywards. Using them as stepping stones, he leapt up back onto the platform and teleported, reappearing in the air above the general's head and sword leading the way._

_Then Hagul spun, a massive hand snatching him out of the air and smashing him into the barrier with an iron grip. "I said it was over, boy!"_

_A wicked smile split the general's face as he loomed closer to him, captive unable to move for the sheer weight trapping him. "What will you do now?"_

"_D-d-da..." A cough, a splutter and then a sharp breath as the general loosened his hold just enough to let him speak. "Dragons."_

_Hagul stared. "What."_

"_Dragons." A feral smile, a predator catching prey in a trap. "Three dragons."_

_The roars heralding their arrivals were enough to drown out the screams of fear and then pain as three dragons flashed over the castle, a great red one streaking a battlement with a jet of flame and leaving nothing but melted armor and the stone glowing cherry-red._

"_Get the golems to the dragons, bring them down! Pikes in front, archers behind! Use the ballista!" Hagul roared and his men scrambled to comply, but the commands too late and reached too few. The red dragon swooped into the courtyard near U'ulgan, tackling one of the golems and unleashing a blast of flame in its face. The green one stormed the battlements, waves of corrosive gas sweeping aside lines of men and claws cracking the stone beneath as if they were nuts._

"_Caserin!" Hagul let his captive drop as the bloodied sand slid through the cranks in the planks and sealed the queen's shadow in a ball. "Kill him and then go after that green dragon." Storming over to his throne, he ripped his axe from the sheath on its back. "I will crush the red one."_

_He paused as he realized he wasn't hearing the usual sound of bone and flesh break as Caserin would literally crush the person he had cocooned. Instead, there was a grinding noise and over that, the crackle of magic._

_The general spun and his eyes widened. Caerian's sand was now sparking with black and red energy and was being forced apart by something he could not see. And in the middle of it was the queen's shadow. Blood-red energy pooled around his hands and the rest of his body, arcing like lightning._

_The sand was scattered now, writing and lashing around him like a living and then they could see it take brief, screaming human shape. Then it was simply gone, scattered to the winds as the sorcerer's energy was drawn into the boy's hands. "Blood magic! You soaked Caserin in my soldier's blood so you use blood magic!"_

"_Yes." He looked like an image out of hell, hair blowing wildly in the power he was giving off, sparks of red and black arching over his body and a nightmarish, silver glow around his hands and in his eyes. "Destroying your sorcerer's soul is a powerful catalyst."_

_With that, he plunged his hands into the air and they seemed to vanish. But then giant hands comprised entirely of black fire emerged near the golems. They seized the stone creatures with ease, squeezing until they were nothing but crumbling rocks and dusts._

"_Stand and fight! Fight!" The general roared as his lines broke, Ul'uglan and the dragons smashing and tearing through the retreating men like they were nothing. But seeing the golems that had anchored their battle destroyed by the literal powers of hell had eradicated whatever fighting his spirit men had left. Like rats deserting a sinking ship, they scattered in all directions to find sanctuary and found only death._

_Hagul fixed his gaze on the queen's shadow, an ugly look on his face. He had lost and he knew it. But he wasn't finished. "You...demon!" He charged, the axe that could split a man in two held high. "I will cast you down to hell were you belong!"_

_Only for the earth-shattering blow to be stopped cold by a pale hand deftly catching the blade. The general's eyes widened horror as he saw who it was. "Y-Your Majesty..."_

"_Acquiescence will not save you now, Hagul." The Shadow Queen simply moved the axe aside and let it drop. "You have betrayed your Queen and now you will die for it."_

"_The Seal...The Seal drained your magic!" He backed away wildly. "You could have not escaped!"_

_She held up her palm, revealing a small necklace with an even smaller teal gemstone set inside. "I pulled this off one of your men when you attacked me. I do not know what this Orichalcos is, but I understand it enough to know that applying a stone to anything it creates breaks it." Shadows enveloped the necklace and broke it apart. "I could have escaped any time I wished."_

"_Why...why didn't you?" The general could feel him slipping off the edge of the execution platform and then he froze as shadows rose up and snared his limbs securely._

"_I did not because I wanted to know who would betray me, who else would think that they had the power to challenge the Shadow Queen. And now I know." Her hand rose to rest on the breastplate and he flinched. "And to show others the fate of those who cross me."_

"_Maj-majesty, I-" Hagul's words were choked off as her hand simply slid through his armor and flesh like it wasn't there and a fearful sweat poured down his face he literally felt her fingers grasping his heart._

"_Hagul." She made sure to catch his eye. "I win."_

_The general's scream was louder than anything else on the battlefield._

_Letting the fresh corpse drop to the ground, she turned and strode over to her shadow. He was standing in the center of the platform, watching her and still wreathed in the blood and shadow of the unholy power he had unleashed. "Are the rest dealt with?"_

"_Yes. Falnaught is being kept on the fifth level and his men who have refused to swear fealty have been slaughtered. His lands are under my men's control, as his castle." His eyes, stormy darkness and silver swirling and dancing, matched the feral grin he wore. "The plan is a success."_

"_Yes. Thanks to you, my shadow. I would have trusted no one with my safety but you." Her blood-stained hand came up, raking through his ragged hair and sliding down his cheek, leaving a smear. "You are beautiful like this."_

_He did not blush nor shy his eyes, merely leaned his head into her touch slightly. "As you say."_

"_Yes...always as I say..." She let her fingers flit over his face, leaving droplets of fresh blood behind. A dark, satisfied smile crossed her face when he gently licked some of it off her hand. It was not lust or love or passion between them, but an understanding. Something beyond words. A resonance, as dark as it gets._

_Then the moment had passed and she turned her attention to the battle surrounding them. "Dragons...what did you promise them?"_

"_Hagul's wealth and castle are theirs, as are whatever they wish to help themselves from his lands for a period of one week." He flicked a bang out of his eyes. "Their strength will augment our defenses and our attack forces greatly."_

"_Good. The loss of Hagul and Falnaught is unfortunate, as they held the largest standing armies in the Empire." She watched the carnage carry itself further to the interior of the castle the remaining soldiers sought sanctuary. "We will have to delay our invasion of the Yokai lands."_

"_Only by two decades as we strengthen our borders and allow the next generation to grow." He stepped up near her right side. "As you requested, the Lord and Lady of the House of Creeping Darkness have opened negotiations with us. Should they prove successful, the Four Clans will not see us coming for their own infighting."_

"_As it should be. By the time they realize we are there, they will have been enveloped by the shadows completely. No matter how long it takes." The Shadow Queen stood there, under that blood-obscured sun and amidst the carnage and terror and smiled. The traitors had been rooted out and crushed. Her enemies would be pitted against one another, never seeing the hand that blinded them from their true foe. And her shadow stood with her as she knew he always would._

_Ten, twenty or fifty years, it mattered not._

_The darkness was forever, she was forever and she would hold the whole world in the palm of her hand._

TTTTTTTT

Adrian landed gracefully atop the pile of rubble Armityle had left in his wake, wings returning to their original shape as his coat. Ears flicking this way and that for any sound of the demon, he glanced around carefully.

"_Over here, insect." _The Librarian turned to see the ragged humanoid shadow standing about a dozen yards down the hallway. Despite the damage he had taken in his other forms, he looked none worse for the wear, a mocking grin splitting what passed as his mouth. _"I hope it wasn't too hard to find me."_

"You will wish it was, Armityle." The Queen appeared between the pair, a dark scowl on her face. "You said your pain is greater, but what you feel now will be a trifle compared to what I will do to you."

"_Pain? Yes, you know how to inflict it well, little girl." _He tilted his head back, spreading his arms like he enjoying the rain. "_The malice and angry...the sheer hatred that lives within the walls, the stones, the very air of your prison...how intoxicating..."_

"What are you-" Adrian and the Queen braced themselves as a howling wind suddenly erupted down the corridor towards Armityle, blood-red lines of energy seeping from the all directions to be pulled into the shadowy being. "Incredible..."

"_Yes, yes, isn't it?"_ Armityle laughed as the energy kept pouring into him. _"A thousand and one hundred years of hatred and agony...it as if __it's__ the finest of wines." _He leered at the Queen. _"I can taste your three hundred years of hatred, little girl. So bitter as to be sweet...do you hate your captors more? Or perhaps __it's__ a hatred of self...?"_

The Queen snarled and a sword appeared in her hand, but Adrian caught her wrist before she could move. "Don't. The hatred he's absorbing is all directed at you, meaning a good hit on you will leave you literally pulling yourself together for the next few days."

"_You're clever to figure that out so quickly, insect."_ He smiled as the hatred and malice continued to pour into him. _"Are you going to challenge me all by yourself? You do seem a rather unique type of bug..."_

"Of course." The Librarian extended his hand and in a flash of light, his violet-crystal blade appeared in his grasp. "Defeating guys like you is what I do for a living...plus, you ruined my plans for tonight with this fair lady, so that's more than enough reason to smack you around even if you weren't a evil pyschopath."

"_And absorbing your power into me would be most beneficial." _Armityle held out his hand. "_But I grow weary of simply striking you down from on high, so I will lower myself to your level and play the game as I did in the old days." _Shadows spun above his hand and when they cleared, a stack of Duel Monsters cards floated above his palm. _"It is...as I have heard it said, time to duel."_

Adrian and the Queen glanced at each other, then stepped back and apart to give themselves the maximum amount of room in the hallway. Adrian's sword began a glow of light that morphed into a violet, gold and white duel disk on his arm while shadows simply pooled together to form a pitch-black one on the Queen's arm.

"_A wise choice, though it only prolongs your suffering..."_ Armityle's arm bulged, releasing a demonic-looking disk that resembled his namesake's head. _"For if you entertain me enough, I will consider offering you a swift death."_

"Better than you have tried before to kill me and failed." The Queen exerted her power, the shadows around them piling up and becoming an all enclosing dome of violet and black of a Shadow Game. "You cannot kill pure darkness, Armityle. When you try, it only swallows you whole."

"And I've died more than once. It never really sticks." Adrian smiled calmly, unbothered by the Shadow Game or his opponent's power. "So you're out of luck there."

Armityle's mouth merely split into another wicked grin. _"Interesting...three immortals in a fight to the __death." _His body's edges seethed and lashed. _"Come on then! Fight with all your power, insects and make my hate burn even stronger!"_

TTTTTTTT

A/N: _Don't you just hate cliff-hangers? _

_See you next time!_


	4. The Kyubi's Tale

Shadowchasers: Twice-Told Tales  
by 7th Librarian

_A/N_:_ This Shadowchaser is actually one not created by me, but by a good a friend. My greatest thanks to him for his always present assistance when I hit a stumbling block in my writing. I hope I do your creation justice._

_Maria's creator also wrote the two bookend scenes. Thesis is their creation._

_And my thanks go to Cyber Commander for editing the majority of this on short notice thanks to my normal beta being busy. I owe you one, CC._

_As always, enjoy._

TTTTTT

"So."

"So."

Two men sat across from each other at a small table, outside a bustling coffee shop. In temperament and appearance, an unlikelier pair couldn't be found- one had dressed in an impeccably well-kept suit and coat, and carried himself with an air of grace and dignity, his silver hair a stark contrast to his youthful appearance. The other was dressed in an extremely shabby short-sleeved shirt and a threadbare pair of jeans, and his dirt-brown hair ran wild across the sides and back of his head down towards his shoulders. Each man held a cup full of hot, steaming tea, and every so often they lifted it up in synch and took a drink.

The well-dressed one spoke first. "Come on, Thesis. You've said before you declared this place off-limits."

"Rules are meant to be broken, Seventh," the messier of the two replied. He grinned, revealing that despite the dingy condition of his clothing his teeth were a brilliant white, and his canines seemed to jut out a slight bit more than normal. "Besides, I don't think this realm is exactly your home turf either- Librarian."

Adrian, Seventh Librarian Arcanium, shook his head slowly. "I have reasons to be here, Thesis. There's no realm that doesn't need a Librarian. You don't have that kind of limitation- whatever reasons you're here for are your own. So what are they? What are you up to?"

Thesis snorted slightly, taking another sip of his tea. His eyes glinted, slightly green-yellow with pupils which seemed to subtly shift back and forth from human circles to more bestial shapes and back again in the shadows of the twilight hour. "Hey, it's like you just said- I've got my own reasons. I'm not obligated to tell them to you, or anyone else, Seventh." He watched the man across him tense himself and held up his hands in response. "Relax! I'm not here to stir up trouble or anything. You know my policy- if it's the world's problem, the world can sort it out itself. I'm just here to soak up the local atmosphere."

Adrian gave Thesis a long stare.

Thesis relented, sighing. "Fiiiine. Okay, and I might have sort of kind of accidentally maybe... lost track of an elder fragment I was chasing and it landed here, so I'm still on the lookout for it."

Adrian nearly spit out his tea. "An _elder fragment_? As in a proto-elder-god? You just let something like that slide into this universe?"

"Well, this one was a flier, so more like, um, glide in," Thesis held up his hands, palms outward. "Hey, don't give me that look, Seventh! It's not like I led it here or something! It just sort of went wild and I-"

"You tried to kill it in a needlessly extravagant fashion, didn't you."

Thesis groaned, lowering his head in shame. "...Yeah."

"Brilliant. I came here to do some light book-keeping, and now I have to keep an eye out for something with twelve heads, tentacles, and god knows what else," Adrian moaned. "Couldn't you just _once_ go hunting for these things without dragging me into it?"

"I tried! You just keep showing up wherever they crash-land!" Thesis rolled his eyes. "Anyway, it's not like it's a big, pressing thing. As soon as that fragment hit this world it went dormant, and I haven't sensed it since. I'm pretty sure it landed somewhere near here and it can't get that far if I'm on its tail, so all I have to do is wait for it to wake up and start trying to devour civilians. Can't take that long, can it?"

Adrian's only response was to glare at Thesis for a full minute.

Thesis groaned, lowering his head in shame once more. "Alright, alright, I get it! I'll deal with the thing as soon as it shows up and make up the lost time to you, okay? Just give me a break!"

Adrian rolled his eyes. "As long as you're sorry."

The two took another sip of tea.

"So." Thesis contemplated his cup. "Um, as long as we're sitting here, anything interesting going on in this neck of the woods?"

Adrian smiled slightly. "This is another excuse for story time, isn't it? You can't resist that."

Thesis shrugged. "Guilty as charged."

Adrian pursed his lips, thinking back. "Come to think of it- this whole thing does remind me of something that happened in this universe before. Something like... twenty years or so ago, now. There was an incident where some kind of elder being tried to feed off of the fear and rage of a group of tourists on an island. Most of the people involved are dead, and those who aren't ended up in the equivalent of nice, padded cells for the most part."

Thesis groaned. "I thought you were telling me a story, not trying to guilt-trip me about the one I was tailing getting away."

Adrian shook his head. "Actually, the story is about one of the people left behind..."

TTTTTTT

_The Kyubi's Tale_

TTTTTTT

"Dude, we like-totally-_scored!_" The speaker was a tall, lanky elf dressed in a black stocking-cap, black sweater and sweatpants. He was grinning from pointy-ear to pointy-ear, two large stuffed backs swaying as he practically skipped down the moonlit sidewalk.

"I know, dude! We're rocking major samolians!" His partner was dressed the same as the elf, but only had one bag of goods slung over his shoulder. But he was grinning just as widely, which also happened to reveal his very pointed teeth. "It's living on easy street for us here on out!"

"Psh, no way, Alfred!" The elf skidded to a halt and spun on his heel to point in his partner's face. "You got brains, so use 'em! What's the first thing the man is gonna do when they find out we got away with the goods?"

"Ummm..." Alfred went a little cross-eyed at how close the finger was. "Look for people spending money like it's going the way of the dodo and disco, Louie?"

"That's right! So we gotta lay low like limbo and then we'll be as good as gold once the summer heat becomes a fall breeze, my main man!" Louie walloped a bag of his goods over Alfred's head to emphasis his point. "Capeesh?"

"Ow!" Alfred winced and rubbed his head with a sigh. "Capeesh..."

"There- now you're flying aces, kiddo." Louie said with satisfaction and resumed his near-skip down the sidewalk. "I know you wanna celebrate and all, but we gotta do it right. Can't give away our cover, ya know."

"Can I get undercover, too, boys?" A figure detached themselves from the shadow, revealing a sultry-looking woman in an outfit that was definitely not appropriate to be walking around in. She batted her eyes and smiled at them promisingly. "I like it there..."

The two thieves stared at her. "A-dduhhhh..."

"Eyes down here, please." She pointed a slender finger at her ample bosom. "That's what you like to see, right?"

"Louie..." Alfred tugged on his buddy's sleeve and pointed urgently. "That bush is talking!"

"Bush?" Louie glanced over to where his friend was pointing and frowned. "That thing? It's a bush-how can it talk?"

"I swear, I heard it!"

"Helloooo..." The woman waved her hands and folded her arms into a delicious pout. And as she 'spoke', the bush rustled. "I'm talking to you..."

"Hey, you're right, it is moving!" Louie peered closer at the bush and scratched his head. "Wind maybe? Or the jitterbug?"

"No way, I think it's doing the twist..." Alfred readjusted himself to look closer at the bush, then jumped as the items in his bag clinked. "Louie, we gotta get moving! We got our loot to stash, remember!?"

"Oh yeah-I mean, I was just waiting on you and your talking bush to announce the engagement!" Louie laughed nervously and then two tore pell-mell down the sidewalk, barely noticing that A) they passed through the woman like she was fog and B) as they did so, she dispersed into nothingness with a surprised expression on her face.

The bush shuffled a bit, rotating after them as it watched them go. Then it rustled sharply as an irritated growl emitted from it and what looked a large fox tail pricked up from amongst its leaves. "Who the hell is that stupid to miss that opportunity?"

TTTTTTT

"Louie! Louie, the mailbox is talking!"

"Quiet, Alfred! This lamp's giving me the lowdown on some serious mojo and I need to know if more mo or more jo, kay?" The elf scolded his partner and returned to his attention to the golden lamp that was sitting in the middle of the sidewalk atop a pile of gold and jewels. "Now what were you saying, Mister Lamp?"

"I'm not a lamp, a genie _inside_ the lamp." The silver trinket's voice sounded much like someone who had a voice much higher on the register trying to make themselves sound deep. "And if you free me, I will grant you a wish!"

"A wish, huh?" Louie hummed to himself in serious contemplation, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Sorry, Mister Lamp, but we got our hands full with these-" He held up his two bags of ill-gotten gains. "So we can't take you away with us and let you go, but best of luck! C'mon, Alfred!"

The two thieves scurried away, the mailbox rocking in irritation and then the fox tail appeared from it again. "Not again...!"

TTTTTTT

"Oh my lord, that thing is so cute!"

"Isn't it, though?"

Peering up at the two thieves was a cartoon-looking kitten, with very big and very blue wide eyes and a cute smile on its face.

"Awwwww..." Louie felt himself melt at the sight of the little animal. "What's a little thing like you doing out so late, kitty?"

The cat simply smiled bigger and swished its tail. "Meow?"

Neither thief noticed that the cardboard box nearby seemed to shuffle a bit as the cat meowed.

"C'mere, you little rascal!" With a grin, Alfred reached down to pet the animal, but it meowed again and then scurried away into a dark alley. "Hey now!"

The pair sprinted after the cat, who now waiting at the other end of the alley. It meowed again and liked a paw, wiping it over its face adorably.

"I'mma gonna catch you, kitty, yes I am!" Louie crowed as he raced towards it, Alfred on his heels.

Unfortunately for the ambitions of the future cat-owning criminals, the end of the alley and the cat dissolved away to reveal a brick wall a step before they collided with it.

"About time!" The cardboard box shimmered and faded away to reveal a young woman dressed in a billowy black gown that was trimmed in gold and hot pink. A hat of similar make was perched on a blonde head and her braid swished as she yawned and stretched. "I can't believe that those two idiots were so hard to trick..."

"Wouldn't it have been easier to, you know, just confront and catch them?" Dropping down from a nearby rooftop was a second young woman in jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, a pair of spectacles perched on her nose. "These guys weren't exactly the top-of-the-line criminals, you know."

"And that's why we did it the way we did." The first woman confirmed with a nod. "When you become a Shadowchaser, young apprentice, you'll learn that you have to take your amusements where you can get them."

"Uh-huh." The apprentice Shadowchaser regarded her elder flatly. "I think you just wanted to show off your illusion powers and it didn't go as well as you hoped, Maria."

"Okay, you have me there, Leona." Maria chuckled sheepishly and readjusted the brim of her hat. "But it is part of the lesson for tonight."

"And what would that be?"

"That stupid criminals are sometimes more dangerous than smart ones." Grabbing a parasol whose coloration matched her dress and seemingly produced out of nowhere, Maria used it to gesture at the two unconscious thieves. "My illusions aren't that complex unless I put effort into them, but an average person would have at least paused at them. They just went with them, however."

Leaning on the umbrella like it was a cane, Maria cocked her head at her apprentice. "So then Leona, what do you think would have happened if we had simply stepped out of the shadows and yelled 'Freeze! Shadowchasers!'?"

"Well, they would have run..."

"Yes. And we would have had to chase them and find a way to corner them. And if that happened, dumb as they are, it is very possible that...?"

"They would have fought us."

"Yes." Maria held up a finger to emphasis her point. "Given our training, we could have handled ourselves, but there is few things more dangerous than a cornered animal. So that's tonight's lesson. Do whatever it is in your power to end any situation or conflict simply and efficiently. The moment violence is put forth as an option, things get that much harder to resolve and no one starts thinking clearly."

The finger pointed at Leona's face sharply. "And if you have to threaten force, _always_ commit yourself to backing that up. There are plenty of criminals who won't hesitate to kill you if they so much as sense weakness. "

Leona blinked that the finger. "That's...really serious coming from you."

"Glad you think so. I do have my moments from time to time." Maria curtsied with her dress and then flicked her wrist, somehow producing a set of keys. She thumbed a button and there was a 'bleep, bleep!' from nearby as a pair of headlights snapped on. "By the way, tonight's lesson covers the basics of your next Shadowchaser test."

A trap card sailed from her grasp and Leona snatched it out of the air. "Attack of the Cornered Rat?"

"Yep. You need to disable a perp through non-violent means or if you duel them, win without declaring an attack or inflicting effect damage. You'll find a list of forbidden cards for this test already in your in-box." Maria chuckled Leona's pained expression. "Okay, rookie, it is officially past midnight, so it is now my day off. The rest up to you."

"Wait- what?" Leona stared after her as Maria made her way over to the D-Wheel. "What am I supposed to do with Tweedledee and Tweedledum over here?"

"Leona, what was the first thing Rayearth told you when you arrived here to finish out your apprenticeship?" Maria swung herself on her bike.

The apprentice looked thoughtful for a moment and then blushed in embarrassment. "'Backwater Shadowchasers are also members of the police force in order to fully utilize Backwater's reservation status with the United States Government and to foster human/Shadowkind integration.'"

"Very good. Which means that in about two minutes, the patrol car will round the corner and you can stuff them in the back after you've arrested them. Then go home and enjoy your day off before Rayearth takes her turn to finish your combat training." Maria tapped a button and a side compartment on her D-wheel popped open, allowing her to stick her parasol amongst the five or so others fitted in neatly.

"Combat training...with Rayearth..." Leona paled considerably at the prospect. "That Incantifer is like a demon out of hell...she's relentless!"

"Well, should you survive, you'll be more than capable than handling yourself in combat and I'm sure your injuries will be fine in a week or two!" Producing a helmet, she slid it on and settled more comfortably into her bike as she revved the engine. "Bye now!"

Leona could only stare and wonder in fear at the horrific training that awaited her at the Incantifer's hands.

TTTTTTT

Six hours later and a few hundred miles later, Maria was still traveling down the nearly deserted Nebraska highway at a rather unsafe speed.

Not that she was worried. Her _Borderline_ was one of the best D-Wheels in the country. Jalal's wealth had funded the purchasing of top of the line parts and her teammates and allies had contributed magical enhancements. Rave, the team's homunculus mechanic, had poured nearly week's worth of days and nights into the bike before pronouncing it satisfactory. The _Borderline_ could practically drive over a land mine and come out smiling and when she was on a straightaway like this, not even Jalal's personal D-Wheel could catch her.

Of course, beyond all the love and effort and magic that went into the vehicle's creation, Maria felt that the D-Wheel's cosmetic design was put it at the top of the list in her mind. A simple white coloration with brown stripes down the side and a cute animal's head making up the front.

It was modeled after a Linoone.

And that, she knew, simply made it better than the rest.

Because it did.

So there.

Chopping back on the throttle only slightly, Maria took a split down the highway and five minutes later, took another split that lead her to a gravel road that seemed to take slow, long bends for no apparent reason around the bland Nebraska landscape. She barreled through it without bothering to really slow down, having traveled the route so many times she could have done it in her sleep.

Finally, she cut back to a far more reasonable speed as she approached her destination. It was a rather dense looking cluster of trees that looked rather out of place out in Nebraska's panhandle and far away from the area's creeks and rivers that could support such verdant greenery.

She slowed to a near-stop, letting her momentum carry her through the entranceway nestled in a high brick wall and glided to a complete stop in front of the rather large complex looking building inside.

Killing the motor, she slid off her bike and popped the compartment before grabbing the parasol from earlier. Snapping it open, she smoothed out the ruffles on her clothing. Once that was completed, she leaned the parasol back against her shoulder and glanced up at the building's front entrance.

_MEADOWLARK ASSISTED LIVING  
ESTABLISHED: 1925_

"Thank god for this place..." Maria entered the building, not surprised to not find anyone waiting in the lobby. Despite the building's name and rather beautiful, if isolated, location, it was not the kind of place that anyone would want to look into for housing their elderly relatives.

Anyone sane and decent, at least.

The receptionist barely looked up as Maria entered, not noticing or not caring that the young woman was coming in at only six in the morning or she was dressed to the nines in clothing that had since gone out of date. She only vaguely nodded and idly flipped a visitor's pass in her direction. Maria deftly caught and it fastened it to her dress without looking.

The Shadowchaser deftly walked through the building's hallways, her feet having trace the path so much she wondered if it was only a matter of time before she simply wore grooves in the tile floor. A turn left here, a turn right there and ducking through the rather vacant employee break room and she was at her destination.

Room 369, which looked like every other room that the hallway lead off to with a simple wood door, its number mounted on it and a sign-in sheet off to the left. Maria signed her name in again, noticing that she had nearly filled the sheet up with her previous visits. That was good, because that meant she was finding the time she needed to come here.

It was also bad, because it meant that all that time had passed and no one was any closer to providing the necessary help.

Gripping her parasol, she held it up and used the curved handle to rap on the door three times. A hand flew to her hat and for a moment, she wondered if she have taken it off because it was rather big and hid her face and maybe it was too much, but her dress was the same style and the hat had been a gift and-

Then the door opened and a much older woman stood there. She was taller than Maria by a good few inches and had dark curly hair that was just beginning to gray at the temples. With a lean, weathered face, brown eyes hidden by spectacles, and dressed in dark jeans and a sweater, it was to see that aging had only sharpened the beauty of her youth.

They stared at each other for a single moment and then all of Maria's worries about her hat vanished as the woman swopped in and swept her into a tight hug.

Maria smiled into her shoulder, squeezing back just as tightly.

"Hi, Mom."

TTTTTTT

Meadowlark's name was rather accurate, though not in the way one would have expected.

The veil could hide Shadowkind from humanity, but it could not hide everything. Throughout the centuries, humans and other Shadowkind would often be caught in the crossfire and unfortunately, those who didn't perish would often be victim to the consequences. Some would be considered mad, babbling about creatures that they saw briefly and others would catch the side effects of spells.

Worse yet were the Shadowkind who would specifically target humans for any number of reasons, for laughs to darker purposes. Even with the Shadowchasers around, they couldn't be everywhere and malcontents and villains indulged in their whims with frightening regularity.

For some, even intervention of the Shadowchasers was not enough. Some afflictions could not be reversed or healed or handled well and the disappearance of the victims would be noticed if they were taken somewhere where help would be possible. Moreover, there were those who were disfigured or altered so radically that living within Mundane society would not have been possible safely.

That was the purpose behind Meadowlark, a joint effort by several Shadowkind leaders and Awares. Built to house all but the most dangerous or changed of affected individuals (Which were generally forced to be moved to the Shadowchaser prisons), it was meant to help the victims until their situations could be cured or managed to the point that they could resume a normal life. Once an idea considered unbelievable, it was simply one of several dozen such places around the globe.

And for those who could no longer have a normal life, it was their lifelong home.

"That Daniel Brewster is doing better, though his skin is still a bit scaly around the neck. The doctors think he'll be able to go home in a little while once they develop a cream to deal with that. There doesn't seem to be anything they can do for his tongue, but I think he likes it. Always flicking it up to his eyeballs like some kind of lizard and I suppose if he goes down on a girl like that, she'll get a nice surprise- I imagine it's quite rough and-"

"_Mom!"_ Maria felt herself redden in the face and quickly hid it by glancing down into her tea mug. "This isn't a soap opera! I don't need to know the sex lives or the potential of them, for all the residents!"

"Oh, Maria." The elder woman smiled as she set her teacup onto its plate, leaning forward in the chair and propping face in her hand. "You're a big girl now. So we can have big girl chats about things like that. Isn't that what you do with all your girlfriends?"

"Being a Shadowchaser _and_ a Shadowkind isn't exactly conductive to having a big social circle, Mom." Maria replied and took a drink of the tea. "My teammates are my friends."

"Ah, but don't you have a devil as a one? Tsukihime, was it? Being a succubus, you'd think she'd have told you far more interesting stories than what I've got." A curious look crossed her face. "I wonder if I should write her a letter and ask her for some details."

"Mom, you're incorrigible!" Maria huffed sharply at the other woman and then pouted as she laughed at her daughter's expression. "And Tsuki is a demon, not a devil.

"I always get them confused. I'll have to write that down if I ever get to meet her- I don't want to insult her." The curls bounced as she tilted her head. "Are you ever going to bring your friends down to meet your father and me?"

"I will, I will." The Shadowchaser promised. "Just that it's not often my off days fall on the same on theirs and when they do, they have things they want to do, too. Not that we get many days off...even with all seven of us, we're pretty busy."

"Hmmph. We'll have to see about getting you and your team some proper vacation time." Her mother glanced over her shoulder to speak out the doorway that lead out of the small kitchen they were in.

"You here that, David? Ask Jalal about getting our dear daughter some time off!"

"Jalal is here!?" Maria spluttered, nearly dropping her teacup.

"I am." The precise, English tones of the leader of the Shadowchasers emerged from the doorway a few moments before he did. He was dressed in a simple black suit and smiling. "Hello, Maria. It's good to see you again."

"H-heh. Same to you, sir." Maria replied with a blush and then hissed at her mother out of the corner of her mouth. "You didn't tell me you knew Jalal!"

The half-dragon had overheard her, however and merely chuckled. "I've known the Temorlines since the late 18th Century-they originally started out as a family of English nobles, after all. In fact, Sir Victor Temorline was one of the best Shadowchasers of his era."

"Yes, well, the small mountain of gold he got for saving that elf princess certainly made the family proud. Married her, too. Made the lot of us descendants feel a bit silly that old Auntie Moonbeam would show up from time to time to check if we were Sensitive or Aware. Something of a family legend, she is." David Temorline was graying as much as his wife was, but had yet to lose his jovial, boyish good looks. Emerging from the same doorway as Jalal, he produced a bouquet of white and purple flowers and handed them to his wife.

As she grinned broadly and got up to find a vase to put them in, David turned back to his guest. "How about it, Jalal? Emma's suggestion for some vacation time for our little fox is a good one, I think." He grinned obnoxiously. "I know she's grown up into beautiful young lady, but you can't horde her all to yourself, you know. Even dragons have to share the treasures of their horde, regardless of what that treasure might be."

"_Dad!"_ Maria was bright red now, having risen to her feet and looking utterly mortified. "I'm not- Jalal's not-how could you think that-why-" She stamped her foot furiously as her father and Jalal both laughed. "Oh, you're both so...so..."

They merely laughed harder.

"Brutes! Idiots!" She huffed at them and grabbed her parasol, jabbing at them pointedly. "Proper English gentlemen? Where? There are none in this room! The knights of yesteryear would be ashamed at your conduct toward a lady such as myself!"

"Quite the foxy lady, too." Emma chimed as she returned to set the vase and flowers on the table. She giggled as her remark earned her a poke from the parasol as well. "I know that was a horrible joke, but I just couldn't help myself!"

"Perhaps I will be unable to help myself when it comes to those truffles I know you have stashed away!"

"And what, ruin your girlish figure?"

"I should say the same to you, Mom!"

Jalal regained control of himself and addressed David as mother and daughter concluded their argument by sticking their tongues out at each other. "As for time off, that is really up to her superior in Backwater. I'm not around enough to really make wise choices concerning rotations and shifts. But I can certainly put in a good word to Rayearth about it."

"Good man." Clapping the elder Englishman on the shoulder, David turned to the two women. "Now how about some lunch, love? Think we could get them to send us some good and proper steak?"

"Well, maybe. Doctor Rubles has been rather generous with handouts this month-probably because they've made so much progress with poor Marcia down the hall. She's stopped bleating, you know."

"I saw that in the lunchroom. Good for her and she actually looks rather charming with her wool all combed like that. If the good doctor is still reluctant, I'm sure a bit more money will loosen him up. Heaven knows we haven't much else to spend it on." David rubbed his hands together briskly as thoughts of lunch danced in his head. "Might as well make a feast fit for kings, eh?"

"Oh, Dad, you don't have to go out of your way! I'm sure Jalal and I would be just fine some sandwiches and some lemonade! I don't think-" Maria stopped in mid-sentence as her parents suddenly froze for the barest of and their eyes gained a far away look. "...oh..."

"Look, Maria! A goldfish catching-game? Think you can catch your old man some dinner?" David laughed and reached down to ruffle the hair of what appeared to be thin-air. "Good point, they are kind of small! Better catch me a five or six!"

"David, don't torment the poor girl. Maria, sweetie, your daddy isn't going to eat the goldfish. They're _pets_, not food." Emma fixed her husband with a stern look, looking miffed at his snickering. She grabbed the small hand of someone who wasn't there. "C'mon sweetie, why don't I hold you up so you can throw some darts? I think I saw a Milotic plushie as one of the prizes. She's your favorite, right?"

A pause and she smiled. "Right, sorry, Ninetails is your favorite. I'll try to remember that."

Maria started slightly as a hand touched her arm and she glanced away from her aimlessly wandering parents to see the face of a dwarf doctor next to her. "Oh, Doctor Rubles..."

"Hello again, child." He smiled at her and then nodded at Jalal, before gently pulling her towards the door. "Come now-it's best we leave them to their own devices. Lingering here won't do you any good."

Maria knew he was right, but she couldn't help but spare a glance over her shoulder. A nurse was gently guiding her parents out of the kitchen and into the open space that was their garden so that they would be less likely to hurt themselves. Her mother was giggling and throwing darts that weren't there, while her father was making faces at what she presumed to be was a clown.

Once they were outside Rubles gently shut the door and then locked it deftly. "We've had to take to locking the door to their room when the illusion settles in- it seems to have gotten more intense lately and they can really travel far while under it."

"I see..." Maria said quietly and gripped her parasol tightly. "Are you any closer to a cure?"

"I'm afraid not by much." Rubles admitted and started leading the pair of Shadowchasers down the hallway. "Illusions aren't like other magical afflictions-there is no physical or magical change to the subjects. It is literally all in their heads and while we can understand what makes up the brain, the 'how' of it does what it does is till beyond medical or magical science, at least precisely."

"My parents told me last time that you were trying some sort of new drug on them."

"Yes, we are. It's a mild sedative mixed in with some anti-curse magic. The sedative makes them tired and the anti-curse magic is supposed to keep the illusion from triggering. We had hoped that by making them tired, the lessened brain activity would slow the onset of the illusion. It hasn't been as effective as we had hoped, but the latest iteration has at least allowed use to put a time frame on the illusion rather having it occur sporadically." The doctor studied his clipboard. "In fact in the last two weeks, they've only been under its effects from about 8am to 4pm.

"That's good. It will give them more structure and balance." Jalal said approvingly and then stopped walking as Maria did. "Something wrong?"

"I don't understand why I can't be in there with them." Maria's grip tightened on her parasol.

"It's by your parents own request, Maria." Rubles told her quietly. "They know how much it pains you to see them under the effects of the illusion and having you sit around waiting for them to come out of it would be harder for all of you."

"But...if it hadn't been for me in the first place..." The parasol creaked as she squeezed and her voice cracked.

"There's no reason to start thinking like that. Believe me playing 'what if'' is a game you'll never win." Jalal put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "You were only six back then. And what you did was very brave and very much a good thing. Not only did you save your parents' lives, but you saved the lives of nearly a dozen other people thanks to your powers. Even if they have to spend a few hours in a fantasy world, they still have a life to live. You saved them from otherwise certain death."

"Yes, I suppose you're right." She offered him a weak smile. "But it doesn't make it hurt any less."

"I know. It took me a long time to learn to cope with what happened to my father and my role in it. But it _does_ happen." He offered her his arm. "And since a knight never leaves a lady in distress to her own devices, why don't I take you to lunch in the cafeteria? My treat."

"I'm the one with a tab here, if you would recall, sir knight." But Maria smiled and took the proffered arm. "But there has been this absolutely decadent chocolate cake they have had sitting in the dessert bar and I would love for another person to help me finish so I don't give into temptation and eat it all myself."

"Chocolate overdose. A most horrendous fate. I will gladly serve thee in this matter, my lady."

"A nobler act was never done, Jalal."

TTTTTTT

"I've found her..." Fingers combed through a scraggly, unkempt beard and worn brown eyes suddenly seemed to spark with mad light. "I knew she'd still be protective of her parents, it was just matter of finding them."

"_Moon~?"_

A tattered robe and cassock that were emblazoned with a sun of silver and white swished as he spun to face his companion. "Don't give me that. And don't screw this up."

"Just remember you get what you pay for." Came the lilting response. "And you paid for the best, so I'd be more worried about you screwing up, _mooooooonnnnn~"_

"I will not fail. I carry the Light within me and it has shown me the truth. All will be illuminated by the Light...or perish."

"_Moon~?"_

"Feh, I don't understand a creation like to understand the truth of the Light. Come on, before she escapes."

TTTTTTT

Maria nudged the last bite of chocolate cake around the plate with her fork vainly. "I don't think I can finish, Jalal...it's up to you."

"I believe the cake has bested me, unfortunately." The leader of the Shadowchasers sighed contentedly and settled back in his chair. "I don't think even my immortality will protect me from bursting if I took another bite."

"I don't think mine will, either..." Maria wiped her mouth with a napkin and pushed her plate away. "Too much of the salad."

"It was the cheeseburger that did me in. I really should ask about getting the recipe for back home." Jalal resisted the urge to yawn and failed, forced to cover his mouth. The table was littered with about a half-dozen plates that the pair had gone through in the last half hour.

"Mmph..." Maria agreed and slumped back in her chair contentedly. "Thank you for visiting my parents."

"No need to thank me. I'm never too busy to take time out of my day for old friends." He said genially. "They're quite the entertaining couple. From what I understand, they're pretty much the leaders of the patients in this place."

"The fact that they're still loaded with more money than God doesn't hurt, nor does being here for twenty years. They are always pretty deadset of making the best of a poor situation. Camping trip ruined because of rainstorm? Build a fort out of the pillows and camp inside. Lost on vacation? Make where you're at your destination and find your own fun." She grinned at the memories. "Heck, we went Pleasureland because our cruise ship broke down and that was the closest place to drop port at. Dad just took the refund money for the cruise tickets and just turned around and bought tickets for there."

She fell silent and a somber expression crossed her face as the memories began to pile up in her hand. At six years old, Pleasureland was a thousand times better than Disneyland and she had been practically bouncing off the walls with the chance to spend some time there. Two days of fun and happiness and so many stuffed animals won at games and bought at gift shops that she had to buy two more suitcases to carry them all.

Then the third day came and the dream became a nightmare and she learned for the first time what she really was. On an island of monsters, she was a predator. So that she fought the monsters and kept people safe by making sure they couldn't see the monsters.

Except, somewhere along the way, 'safe' became 'jail' and she didn't have the key.

No one did.

Then she was jolted out of her reverie by a small barrage of peas striking her face in rapid succession. An incoherent splutter of noise escaped her as she brushed them away in a rush. "What on earth was that for!?"

"You were looking awfully morose and depressed." Jalal said cheerfully, his spoon still quivering and a little bent from using it as a make-shift catapult a moment ago. "I did not want such a pretty young lady as yourself to get stress lines."

"Stress lines!? _Stress lines!?_" Maria's eyebrow began to twitch in anger. "Where on earth did you think it was good manners to hit me with peas so I wouldn't get stress lines!?"

"I didn't think it was good manners. I did think it would be a good way to snap one of my agents out of her gloomy mood and get her to show some liveliness." The half-dragon said cordially. "I hope I don't have to restate that what you did saved many lives and as your parents are constant to remind you, their current life is hardly one to complain about. They have never been anything but thankful for what you did."

"You just did remind-! A knight, throwing peas at a woman! You-! Honestly, I never-! Most impudent, brash and adorable man with-! You-!" Maria growled and huffed through her lack of complete sentences before finally settling down a touch. "You- you, _you!"_

"No, personally, I think that I'm an E, not a 'U'. Stands for 'excellent', 'eternal' and 'effervescent'. All three of which I am." Jalal told her flatly.

Maria just fixed him with a regal look and gave the most lady-like sniff she could manage. "You, sir, are perhaps the most infuriating man I have ever met." She tilted her head up and away from him. "How you ever got the title of 'knight' is beyond me."

"Your tail is showing." Jalal pointed over her shoulder with his fork.

"...what?" Maria tilted her head down and gave a small shriek. Poking up from underneath the bottom hem of her dress was a very sleek and luxurious looking fox tail- white fur tipped in red. "BWAH!"

Just quickly as it appeared, the tail vanished and she breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness. Really need to keep an eye on that. It's really hard to explain why-" She broke off as suddenly pink ringlets of hair fell in front of her face. "GAAAAAHHHH!"

Jalal watched as she concentrated a bit, the hair morphing into strawberry blonde pigtails before finally returning to her usual straw-gold braid. "Problems, Maria?"

She gave him a scowl. "The only problem I have is that a thousand year-old man is messing with me and making me lose my focus on my shaping!"

"..." He just stared at her calmly. "I think you look pretty with pink hair."

"I do-? You do?" Her anger vanished and she smiled before ducking her head to the side shyly. "Well, at least you have enough manners to compliment a lady appropriately."

"It is not always easy. Some of the elf queens can be insanely particular on just how you compliment them. Do it wrong and you essentially piss off the whole bloody forest. In fact, just recently-" At that moment, both Shadowchasers reacted, Maria whipping her parasol around to deftly knock a bayonet out of the air. Jalal, meanwhile, wrenched a plate from the table and whipped like a frisbee. So fast as to be a blur, it battered the bayonet aimed at him out of the air.

A swift slash reduced it to pieces before it could hit its intended target. "You are impressive as I have heard, Jalal Stormbringer. I did not expect you to be here as well." A smile revealed yellowed teeth, cassock and robe billowing in the wind from the hole the man had just created to enter the room.

"Truly, the Light has blessed me this day!"

Maria's eyes widened slightly and then narrowed angrily. "You're one of those priests of the Light of Ruin! I thought we eradicated the last you ages ago!"

"So long as one shown the truth exists, the Light shall always have a speaker for its voice! And I, Thaddeus Kleig, shall make the truth know to the world!" The tattered priest produced a second bayonet from his sleeve and held his weapons menacingly. "And you two will be the first converts!"

"Thank you, but no." Jalal said curtly and his hand vanished into a dimensional pocket, pulling out his blade. "Thaddeus Kleig, for crimes against humanity and Shadowkind, you are under arrest. Surrender or we will take you in by force."

Maria stepped up by Jalal, gripping her parasol like it was a sword. "Please, go with the latter option. After what you guys did, I've got nothing wrong with bloodying you up some."

"I am devout, not a fool." Thaddeus sneered. "I am no match for the two of you together and while I prepared with thoughts of only the girl in mind, my plan is nothing if not adjustable."

"What are you-"

"_Mooooooooooooooonnnnnnnnn~!" _Jalal and Maria jumped in opposite directions as a suited, yellow-skinned figure landed a powerful kick on the floor between them. "Care to entertain, Shadowchasers?"

"What the hell are you supposed to be?" Maria landed gracefully on another lunch table, noting that the attacker's kick had been forceful enough to leave a small crater in the floor and send the tiles sailing about. "With an attack like that, you're certainly no human."

"Correct. I am not a human. I am a special homunculi." The suited being grinned, pointing a gloved hand at his crescent-shaped head. "My name is Moonface and it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Moonface..." Jalal gripped his weapon more tightly, gritting his teeth. "An assassin for hire in the Shadowkind Underworld. One of the best and specializing in hard-to-kill Shadowkind. Also...wanted in the deaths of three Shaowchasers."

"What!? Three!?" Maria took a step back to put some more distance between her and the homunculi. "Then where's his Imprints?"

"_Moon~?"_ Moonface tilted his head quizzically and then was forced to duck and slid away as Jalal's swipe nearly took off his head. "Oh, that was quite ferocious. Have I made you angry, Stormbringer?"

"Not even close." Jalal followed up with a snap-kick that the homunculi threw up his hand to block, but at the least second, dropped the leg and jumped with it, faster than any human could ever move. His leg collided with Moonface's head and sent him tumbling end over end into the wall. "Takes a lot more than walking cartoon character to make me lose my temper."

"I see." Moonface dusted himself off as he stood. "Well then, having you fly into a rage is hardly entertaining, anyway." He held up his hands, the narrow and pointed fingers looking knives. "But I wonder how many times I can rip out your organs before it gets boring."

Jalal's response was to lash out with a flurry of slashes and thrusts, barely even showing any surprise as Moonface's hands got in the way of every one and met the edge of his weapon head on without taking any damage.

Thaddeus watched the pair exchange blows, vanishing out the hole he and Moonface had entered from. "Now that that distraction is out of the way, I will claim my objective." He turned to face Maria.

Only to twitch his head aside as the tip of the parasol nicked open a line on his face and an impromptu block with a bayonet caught the second thrust. "Aggressive girl..."

"Preemptive strikes have a habit of coming across that way, yes." Maria jumped away to avoid the second bayonet and then suddenly found herself on the defense as the blades flashed lightning fast. Only deft movements with her parasol or twitches kept him from landing any hits.

"Preemptive strike, yes, but because I can tell that you lack the physical strength and endurance to engage in a prolonged fight with me." Thaddeus grinned savagely as she jumped back onto a table to avoid his cross-slash. "You have not produced a sword to fight me with and your umbrella is a poor substitute."

"First of all, it's a parasol, not an umbrella and second-gah!" Maria's retort was cut short as Thaddeus slashed the table apart in a flurry of strokes. She back-flipped away as the priest simply tore through the table like it was a tree and he was a wood-chipper.

Unfortunately, the extra second she needed to coil her legs for the last flip to another table as a second too long and as she reached the mid-point, his hand flashed out. A shriek of surprise and pain followed as Thaddeus used his newfound grip on her braid to spin her in a circle and whip her away.

She crashed through the cafeteria doors, tearing one off its hinges and came to a skidding halt. Only his berserk cry made her ignore the pain and roll to the side as he plunged both of his weapons into the space where her body had been a moment before.

Springing to her feet, she ducked under a slash and grinned as she heard the bayonet bounce off the suddenly-magically reinforced door, throwing of his balance. A swift punch to his upper arm and the bayonet clattered to the ground uselessly as that arm dropped to his side.

"What...how?" The priest only got a foot in the face for an answer and he went reeling back, blood droplets flying from his nose. "Damn you!"

"Sorry, but this place is in lockdown. It'd take a tank for you to blow a hole through the doors or walls now. And I just hit a particular nerve cluster in your right arm. You're not going to be moving it for a while." Maria smiled mockingly. "Narrow hallway, too. Means you're not going to get any big swings in here, either."

"Resourceful..." Thaddeus steadied himself and gave her a berserker grin. "You will make an excellent servant to the Light."

"Not happening. I-" She felt her eyes widen as suddenly there were bayonets clenched between the knuckles of his good hand. "...where did those come from? Your sleeve aren't-"_"_

The blades hissed through the air, forcing her twist around them while swatting one out of the air with her parasol. But the barrage continued and she backed up desperately, parasol and reflexes only allowing her to receive cuts across her body instead of impalement.

Thaddeus broke into a head-long sprint, hurling more and more of his seemingly endless supply of bayonets. His grin grew wider as he saw her defenses slip, slashes appearing on her arms and sides. "You are mine!"

One last handful distracted her and he leapt up, a second handful launched instantly behind the first. "There's no way you can save yourself from both attacks!"

That was when she snapped open the parasol, where it hid her from view. Then the accessory spun and the bayonets were scattered as they struck, as harmless as if he had thrown scraps of paper. "Impossible!"

Maria reappeared and silver flashed in his vision. Then pain erupted and he only belatedly realized she had taken advantage of his immobility in the air to land a lengthy, but shallow slash across his chest. Even as he landed, she already within his zone. Silver and light danced, a dozen cuts opening across his body and then his reflexes took hold and launched him backwards down the hall. "How...!"

"I have a sword, just like every Shadowchaser. Mine is just of a different variety." Maria brandished her weapon to shake the blood on it free. It was a black rapier, the curved grip revealing that it was in fact stored inside her parasol and the guard vaguely resembling a revolver barrel. The parasol top was somehow mounted on her other wrist, as strong and durable-looking as any shield. "Its name is _Chivalry _and it is both my sword and shield against people like you."

"Tch..." Thaddeus produced a bayonet and gripped it tightly. "The Light shall have you, Maria Temorline. The truth will shatter your chivalry!"

With a berserker cry, he charged.

TTTTTTT

A tree groaned and splintered partway up its length from the force of Moonface's punch as Jalal twisted to the side at the last minute. A second later, his upswing tore through the homunculi's elbow, only for a backhand to send him reeling.

"You're pretty good, _moon~"_ Moonface caught his arm as Jalal steadied himself. Holding it up to the stump, sparks crackled slightly and the limb was good as new. "Not many can actually hurt me so easily."

He flexed the repaired limb, testing it out by punching a hole through the damaged tree. "If I didn't reclaim my limbs every time you cut them off, I couldn't hold my own against you one-on-one like this, _moon~"_

Jalal just kept his blade up on the defensive. His suit was torn and nicked everywhere, but there was no major damage. "When you live as long as I have, you learn to handle yourself in a fight."

Then he was moving, a thrust blocked by those knife-like hands. A flurry of blows were also blocked and then Jalal dropped low for a second, stepping forwards and thrusting up at the same time to gut the artificial assassin.

Moonface's knee knocked the blade off course, but then Jalal hooked his arm through the knee and lifted up, throwing the homunucli into the air. A barrage of punches caught Moonface across the torso and lifted him even higher. "_Moon!?~"_

Jalal spoke a word and pointed his weapon into the air, a single sphere of flame forming at the tip. He spoke again and the fireball doubled in size before exploding skywards like a rocket, enveloping Moonface completely.

As the smoking assassin began to feel the effects of gravity, Jalal launched himself into the air and stabbed forwards, his eyes narrowing slightly as he saw the result.

"That was close, _moon~."_ Moonface stared at the blade's point an inch from his face, the weapon having been halted by the fact it had had to stab through both of his palms. Then another blast of fire from the weapon sent him smashing down to the ground.

Jalal's doublekick smashed the ground as Moonface rolled away. The homunucli came up whirling, his lanky arms and hands becoming razor-tipped whips. Jalal backed and parried, barely changing his expression as his defenses failed and slashes opened up on his torso and forearms. His blade swept low, ice trailing the arc and spreading across the ground.

Moonface staggered, but let himself fall to avoid Jalal's one-two combo of a forehand and backhand slash that would have left his head in three pieces. He somersaulted forwards and sprang up, grinning brightly as his hands both pierced Jalal's gut.

Or that was his plan. But then half-dragon's blade came down first, surging with flames and bite into Moonface's head like it was soft cheese. A second later, it was buried to the hilt down the homunculi's throat.

Kicking the corpse off his blade, Jalal stared it for a moment and then narrowed his eyes. "There's more to you than that, Moonface. So when are you going to show me the trick?"

"Good job on figuring that out, _moon~._"

That was all the warning he had and he threw himself forwards as something hissed in the air where his neck had been. Coming up out of his roll, a thousand years of honed reflexes threw his blade in the oncoming path of a stab that could have pierced his shoulder. Then he was moving again, twitching aside as a fist tried to nail the back of his head and sailing over his shoulder instead. Grabbing the offending limb, he flung them over his shoulder expertly and cocked his head at what he saw.

There were three of Moonface in front of him, two of them pulling themselves up after his throw had caused them to collide and the third crossing his arms patiently. Behind them, the corpse of the one Jalal had slain had simply faded away into dust, suit and all. "Triplets or clones?"

"What? You think we're identical?" The center Moonface cocked his head, the other two giving off that lilting laugh. "What a funny notion! Surely, you can see the difference?"

All three of them bowed. "Clones we are not. We are, in fact, Moonface." They straightened...and suddenly there were two more Moonface filling out their V formation. "Getting the picture now?"

"I see...your ability reflects the phases of the moon." Jalal lifted an eyebrow as he saw more and more Moonface appear in the V, one somehow still working without even a head. "From a new moon...to a full moon. Zero through twenty-nine."

"Correct!" They all said in unison and smiled. "My power is known as Satellite Thirty! I am my own army, _moooooonnn~!_"

"With a power like that, it's easy to see that how you became a successful assassin. However..." Jalal reached up and tore away the remains of his suit top, leaving him bare-chested. "I have just one comment to make."

"And what's that, _mooon~?"_

"Thirty isn't nearly enough to the tip odds in your favor." One moment, he was moving forwards and the next, he was among them. Two swift slashes took the heads off of two of the homunculi. "Nor is twenty-eight."

Then everything was a blur as they surrounded and swarmed him, only to meet with deadly steel.

TTTTTT

Thaddeus bellowed out his rage as another slash from his bayonet was simply deflected by the umbrella shield. A second later, the rapier flicked out too fast for his eyes to truly follow and a pair of thin cuts opened on his arm. His retaliating kick simply hit air as she jumped backwards. "Light damn you!"

Maria didn't respond, save for spinning the revolver like portion of her rapier. The priest caught a glimpse of white as the chamber locked and then blinding light erupted as she slashed it through the air. When it faded, he gaped as he saw her running across the ceiling like it was the floor, her blade already hissing through the air for his shoulder.

But it still too slow and he brought his own weapon up to block, waiting for the ring of metal on metal to counter attack and finally get around the blasted shield of hers...

Only for pain and a fresh slash to open on his left leg.

Whirling after her, he saw that she had dropped from the ceiling and was charging again, this time from the left. Again his blade moved to intercept...and this time, the pain and blood came from his right ribs. "How!?"

Light flashed again and again as he saw her lunge into his zone, but his blade always failed to meet hers and pain blossomed across his body as she opened up a score of cut and slashes. "How!? How!? How can I not block you!?"

Then his eyes widened and he jumped away to put distance between them. "Your cursed illusions!"

"That's right." Maria said as she flicked her blade again to clean the blood off it. "It's a very simple one, as well. All I'm doing is reversing how your senses see and hear me. Your world is inverted now. And you cannot fight against it, because your reflexes surpass your conscience thought. No matter how skilled you are, you cannot fight your reflexes and figure out where I am at the same time."

"The Light will pierce your trickery!" Thaddeus produced a handful of bayonets in both hands, his right hand finally have regained use. "Even if I can't truly see which direction your attacks are coming from, I can still hit you with something you can't dodge or block!" The bayonets flew down the hallway as fast as he could hurl them.

And then passed through her like she was not even there. At the same time, he felt something slid into his body and glanced down to see the bloody tip of her rapier through his stomach. And her cool voice in his ear. "Didn't I say I inverted your world?"

Fury burned through him and he lashed out her with an elbow strike. But the blade was yanked from his chest and the blow merely scraped off the shield as she deflected it. Even as he completed his turn, he saw her simply ripple and fade away into the air. Pain erupted in his temples as he was suddenly standing on the ceiling of the hallway, his mind and body contradicting one another as they tried to make sense of what he was experiencing.

"No...no...no...no..._no!_" He snarled and closed his eyes, seething with impotent rage. "I will not be tricked! I will not lose! I will not!"

His fists clenched hard and he thrust one into the air. "_LIGHT! SHINE DOWN!" _Too-white light burned to life around his form. Its intensity flared and then surged, crackling against the magical lockdown of the building violently.

His eyes, now surging violently white, snapped open as he heard a cry of pain as the air in front of him warped, the hallway snapping back to normal as Maria was suddenly revealed. The Shadowchaser staggered and shuddered in pain as the unholy energies crackled around her body.

But it wasn't enough to stop her and she threw up her shield as he stormed for her. His supply of bayonets had been exhausted or he simply didn't care anymore as he rained blow after blow against her defense. Each one was like a jackhammer and Maria gritted her teeth as they began to slowly slid her backwards.

Suddenly, with a sharp splintering sound, a spider-web of cracks appeared in the shield. Meant for deflection and not to absorb blows, the enchanted parasol was shattered by the next punch like cheap glass and then it caught her in the face. It was like getting hit by a freight train, the attack hurling her off her feet and down the hallway.

She dug her heels in, stopping her slide and spitting out a mouthful of blood and a fang. "That was my favorite parasol!" With a click, the now useless shield dropped from her wrist and she brought up her blade. The chamber spun as a glowing Thaddeus roared and charged and she smiled as this time, blue seared through her weapon.

The blue spread through her feet and she blurred down the hallway. She didn't slow as she and Thaddeus reached one another, her rapier flashing up in a spinning strike. After-images were left in her wake and it was as if she had hit him a half-dozen times instead of once, the thin red lines marking her score.

"The Light makes your attack worthless!" Thaddeus's fist smashed into her midsection and Maria screamed as the blow bounced her off the floor before his kick sent her smashing into the wall of the intersection.

The Shadowchaser pried herself free and barely managed to throw herself to the side as his punch tore a crater despite the lockdown status of the building. "Damn..." The chamber on her weapon spun again and it red coated the metal.

Thaddeus didn't even care as her eyes glowed and darkness swallowed up everything to leave him standing in a void. A second later, six Maria charged out of the nothingness from all directions. "The Light will pierce your veil!" True to his words, the light around his body flared to the point of blinding.

Energy exploded as he countered the real Maria's slash with a punch, the red power of her weapon hitting him with far more force than her slender body could ever provide. For a moment, they pushed against one another and then she won out, the attack shoving the priest back a dozen feet in an explosion of crimson fury.

Maria didn't skip a beat, her weapon's chamber spinning again and this time landing on green. Unlike the previous colors, it didn't suffuse the blade and instead merely gathered at the point. With a cry, she snapped the blade through the air and a green crescent erupted in its wake.

"_LIGHT! SHINE DOWN!" _Thaddeus' aura flared to full size again and Maria's eyes went wide as he actually _caught _the energy with both hands. It shoved him further down the hallway before he ground to a halt. With an enraged bellow, he hurled it back the way it came.

Sparks flew and metal shrieked as Maria desperately braced her rapier on her arm, the attack grinding against its sender savagely. Then both the energy and her weapon shattered as Thaddeus' white-lined fist tore through it and nearly caved in her chest with its force. The Shadowchaser crumpled back against the wall, coughing and wheezing as she desperately tried to a draw a breath.

He loomed over her form, the too-white energy of the Light of Ruin still outlining his body and filling his eyes. "Yield, woman and I will show you the Light."

She glared at him definitely. "Go...to...-"

"Oh, look, a juggler!"

Her eyes widened at the giggling voice from the end of the hallway. "No!"

Thaddeus' foot planted itself on her chest, halting her attempt to rise. The priest sneered at her groan of pain. His eyes flicked over to see Maria's parents down the hallway, clapping and laughing as they admired a juggling act only they could see. "Ahhh, the bait..."

A bayonet slid out of his sleeve and he slid the weapon's tip along the edge of her face before letting it settle against her neck dangerously. "Trapped in an illusion yet still, even after twenty years. The powers of the Kyubi are great, indeed."

Maria's hand began to slid towards the hilt of her broken weapon, but stopped as the bayonet tip pressed into her neck and drew a drop of blood. "How it must torment you to know that you, their dear daughter, are the cause of their condition, the one who stripped their happy lives away from them."

"Shut up!" Maria snapped at him. "You're the ones who made me do it!"

"Made you?" Thaddeus chuckled derisively, his white eyes still somehow showing his amusement despite their lack of pupils. "Is that what you've been telling yourself? You may think it will ease your mind and your pain, but we both know it doesn't. A lie is just an illusion and those don't work on you, do they?"

The tip of his weapon slid down from her neck, over her collar and began to slid into her dress as it moved between her breasts. "But the Light does not lie, it doesn't cover anything it up. It _reveals_ the truth, parts the veil of lies and deceit that we wrap ourselves in and exposes the real nature of humanity, of life itself."

"Is that what you think? Considering how you tried to sacrifice an entire island of people to summon it, it must think the true nature of people are sheep!"

"And you? What is your true nature?" The blade continued its path down her dress slowly, careful to avoid digging into her soft skin. "I fought you on the island so many times, Kyubi...you were not human than." A dark, satisfied smile that bared teeth. "You were a _monster,_ a _predator..."_

Maria only glared at him, but it was impossible not to notice the flinch in her eyes at his words.

"You were a beast, a predator defending its meal. Oh, you may tell yourself that you were protecting them but I wonder..." The blade suddenly flicked back up her body and she physically flinched as it nicked open a line on her cheek. "Did you have to work hard to avoid feasting on their souls?"

"Be quiet!" Maria's hand snagged her rapier, but she had barely gotten the weapon off the floor before he drove the bayonet sharply into shoulder to pin her place.

"I see...this shell of humanity around you is frail...but the beast inside...will be of great use to the Light." Thaddeus twisted his weapon and laughed as she jerked in pain. A pair of bayonets appeared between the knuckles in his free hand and he glanced to where her parents were still watching the juggler. "When they die, the shell will break...and the Light will show you your true self!"

He drew back his arm to hurl the bayonets and then froze in mid-motion, his whole body seizing up. A too-long moment passed as he turned his head and found that Maria's pinned arm was gripping his wrist like a vise. And her brand-new claws had sank deep into his flesh.

Her head lifted, a growl revealing canine fangs and sharp blood-red eyes. "**How dare you...!**" She wrenched his blade out of her shoulder violently, hardly caring at the spray of blood that followed. "**I'll kill you!**"

The priest was already swinging his other arm towards her, but was far too slow as she hurled him away with her the grip on his arm. He crashed against the ground, rolled and came up on his feet in a guard position- just in time to scream as Maria's slash tore into his forearms and sent pieces of his broken bayonets clattering to the ground.

He felt his kick connect and send her skidding back along the hall, his eyes narrowing and a smile appearing on his face again at what he saw. "So the monster returns..."

"**Shut up!**" Maria snarled, claws red with her opponent's blood. Her ears had been replaced by pointed fox ears atop her head, three long tails almost whipping behind her in her frenzy. White had tinted her hair and the braid was gone, leaving it to fall around her like it was a cape. **"Shut up and die!**"

"Never. They called me the Storm of Light for a reason, girl. I am not just some believer paying lip service because it soothes my soul!" Thaddeus charged, a punch tearing up floorboard as Maria jumped to the side and her arm blurred. Bloody claw marks appeared on his shoulder, but they didn't prevent him from slamming an elbow into Maria and bouncing her off the wall. "I am a relentless hurricane, washing the impure away! And those who are to be saved, reside in eye! A tempest unceasing and unbreakable!"

His foot snapped towards her, but she jumped over it and her own savage kick caught him in the head. Despite its power, it only staggered him and then she lunged as she hit the ground. Claws flew faster than her rapier had before and the priest's robe became a scattering of bloody scraps as she raked blow after blow on him.

"Like a beast..." Despite her fury, Thaddeus landed a backhand that sent her reeling and blocked the roundhouse kick she turned it into. "You're just blindly lashing out."

Maria's red eyes darkened in rage even further as she attacked. Her blows gained in savage ferocity, each one hammering the priest back a step. A snarl of frustrated anger escaped her as she found herself unable to inflict a serious hit on him.

"You fight like an animal, not like the monster I found on that island." Thaddeus almost seemed disappointed by her efforts. A sweep of his arm staggered her and then he seized her wrists in iron-clad grips. "If more must die to bring you into service of the Light, so be it!"

Then he howled as Maria sank her fangs into his shoulder, jerking and wrenching her head to tear into the muscle. "Curse you!"

Bloody arms wrapped around her in a crushing bear hug. "I will break you, woman!" His white eyes burned. "LIGHT! SHINE DOWN!" Power exploded around him, causing Maria to writhe and give off a muffled scream. But she refused to yield her hold on his shoulder, biting as deeply as she could as her claws drove themselves into muscles of his sides.

"LIGHT! SHINE DOWN!"

Another explosion of energy and again she refused to yield.

"LIGHT! SHINE DOWN!" The explosion this time was accompanied by a hard squeeze of his arms and Maria howled in agony before sagging limply in his grasp.

He tossed her in a heap on the floor, a satisfied smile on his face. "You will be a great servant, indeed..." A bloodied hand wound itself into her fur-like hair and yanked her head around as she snarled and snapped at him, her red eyes burning. "I will tear away the veil of darkness you wear and show you the Light..."

Their eyes met and white light seemed to flood Maria's brain...

TTTTTTT

Fire licked and danced with each swing of Jalal's blade and each stroke ignited a bonfire as the Moonface homunculi's pieces were set ablaze by the magical fire.

A swift kick caught one in the gut and Jalal siezed him by the throat, hurling him into a pair of Moonface that had been coming up behind him. A sharp word later and a fireball hissed from the sword to incinerate them swiftly.

"_Mooooon~, _you're really put a lot into this, aren't you?" The commenting Moonface said as he folded his arms. "Just how often are you going to use fireball, anyway?"

"As often as it takes." Jalal ignored the slight fatigue he was feeling from casting magic in such rapid suggestion and turned to face the speaker, his bloodied sword at the ready. "And you're the last one."

"That doesn't mean a thing." Moonface waggled a finger chidingly and then Jalal's eyes widened as the clearing began to fill with more and more Moonface, until all thirty were standing before him yet again. "Each of me is the real me. It doesn't matter which one of me is left, I will never run out of bodies to fight with."

They all began to spread out in a semi-circle, raising their knife-like hands. "I told you I was my own army, Stormbringer. And no one man can defeat an army."

Jalal's response came in the form of a series of fireballs that tore through or burned away several Moonface.

"You Shadowchasers are so stubborn, _mooon~"_ Moonface tutted as the destroyed versions simply reappeared and filled in the gaps the destruction had caused. "I see where your subordinates get it from. They didn't know when to quit, either. It took me days to kill to them, you know."

He pointed a slender finger at the Imprints on his face. "But on the plus side, I don't need to collect pieces of them for trophies with these, _moon~"_

"I see...they didn't back down even at the very end." Jalal stood a little straighter, his eyes hard. "Then I will finish the duty they started so that their spirits may rest in peace."

"How knightly of you, but are you really thinking you can win? Immortal you can be, but my stamina and endurance is far greater than your own. And it is still just you versus an endless army." Moonface chided. "In this case, the unstoppable force beats the immovable object."

With that, the Moonface charged and dogpiled the Shadowchaser leader in a flash. For a moment, the pile looked like it would hold and then a bolt of lightning lanced down from the cloudless sky. The Moonface were hurled away in all directions and dust filled the air as Jalal cut down any within arm's reach.

"That was impressive." Moonface acknowledged as more of him replaced the destroyed ones. "Had I been anything other than a homunculi, that lightning would have fried me to a crisp. As it stands..." He held up the charred, bleeding length of flesh that had been Jalal's left arm. "Would you like to try for a leg, next?"

"No, I don't need to." Jalal seem rather unaffected by the lost of his arm. "I just needed you to hold that."

"_Moon~?"_ The homunculi cocked his head in confusion and then all of him glanced down at the arm as markings began to glow on it. "What is this?"

"Dragon's blood is potent magically...and by extension, so is half-dragon's blood." Jalal watched as splatterings and droplets of his blood the fight has caused began to ignite with blue flames, each one linking and jumping to the nearest ones until a ring of flames had surrounded Moonface. "And when combined with the right magics-such as that rune I put on my arm-is rather explosive."

He watched as the Moonface dropped his arm and moved to leap over the flames, only for the fires to roar larger and drive them back. "Rest in peace."

He turned and began to walk back towards Meadowlark, hardly paying attention as his arm erupted into blue flames that spread across the Moonface and connected with the barrier of fire surrounding them. A second later, it all exploded and a pillar of energy shot skywards for a long moment. "Your death could not come soon enough."

TTTTTTT

"The Light be praised, Light be praised! I have brought you salvation and all that is dark will be purified!"

Even without the raving shouts of a madman, it would have been easy to follow the small trail of wreckage to the source.

Thaddeus Klieg was slumped in the crater his body had obviously created in the wall, heedless of piece of wood impaled through his arm or the fact blood was trickling out of his nose and ears. An excited, bloodstained smile was on his lips and his eyes were wide as they saw something far away from the battleground. "The darkness was swallowed me up, but I did not waver in my resolve and though I were a candle in this all-consuming night, my faith made me blaze and all things were saved by my inferno. I have walked in darkness and found the truth-"

Jalal nudged the man's leg with his boot. Unsurprised as the limb simply moved limply and there was no reaction from its owner, he looked into Thaddeus' eyes anyway. "What happened to you?"

"He got inside my head." Maria came limping up the hallway. Her dressed was still tattered, but her hair had gone back to its normal blonde braid and only her pointed fox ears seperated her from looking fully human. "I don't know what happened, but when I came to, he was screaming in terror and bleeding from his nose and ears like you see. I think he saw something his brain couldn't grasp."

"And you saved him by putting him in an illusion."

"Yes. I do not know how I did so, but...like my parents, his is permanent. And it will not end." She bite on her lower lip, revealing a fang. "It is too good for him."

"Why did you do it, then?"

"It is because he called me a monster. A monster would have let him die." The Kyubi fixed Jalal solemn look. "I am not a monster. Even if he will never know, it's because I am human that I gave him mercy."

Then she started and stumbled over to him. "You're missing your arm!" She gave him a scolding look. "Why on earth would you just wander around letting it bleed out like that!?"

"I can't die from blood loss. And it will regrow within a few days." He blinked in surprise as she somehow produced a handkerchief that miraculously survived the damage to her dress and tied around the stump of his shoulder deftly. "I beg your pardon?"

"Those two were after me and you got your wound defending me. Isn't it a lady supposed to give the knight a token of her affection for such acts? Not to mention to cover for her leader's stupidity." Maria told him curtly as she finished tying a knot. "There. Now don't do anything stupid with it until we can get to a healer."

Jalal just shook his head with a smile. "Very well, very well. I accept your appreciation. And I'll try not to lose anymore limbs today."

"Good." Despite the damage her dress and her body had suffered, Maria drew herself up regally and turned to march down the hallway. "Doctor Rubles is currently attending to a panicked patient, but I'm sure a nurse will be able to help you."

"And what about you? I don't like to leave my agents in such battered shape."

"I'll see that my injuries are attended to, do not worry. I want to check on my parents first. Just be sure to return my handkerchief, Jalal. It's my favorite." She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye slyly and gave him a fox-like grin. "Say, perhaps, over dinner?"

She giggled playfully at his stunned expression, her fox ears fluttering mischievously. "Oh, you're just too fun when you blush like that." Still giggling, she darted around the corner.

The half-dragon watched her go and then groaned. "A thousand years and I still don't understand women..." He ran a hand down his face. "The tabloids are going to have a field day with this..."

TTTTTT

Thesis sat, his eyes closed, meditating on the story. Beside him sat a finished cup of tea.

Adrian exhaled slowly. "Anyway, that's the last I heard of her, or that incident. Jalal classified the original, and apparently it has something to do with why he comissioned the Gotthammers, but-"

"Seventh?"

"Yes?" Adrian tilted his head to the side, slightly.

"Stop saying words that mean nothing to me," Thesis replied, rolling his eyes. "I don't know a thing about the inner workings of this Shadow-chasey-stuff or whatever. I'm just here for-"

A chill passed over both the Librarian and his guest. A predatory grin spread across Thesis's face as he stood up, dusting his hands off. "Gotcha."

Above the coffee shop, the sky curled into strange patterns and space itself began to warp slightly as the fifteen-headed abomination spread its six asymmetrical wings and took flight, its piercing roars driving all who might hear them inches closer to madness with every second. Blood and ichor dripped from its body as it soared, preparing not to actively destroy civilization, but simply to undo it by merely existing. A being of pure chaos, a monster whose ancestors had been spawned in an age before the gods of humanity, and who would cease existing only after the sun had stopped burning.

Thesis leaped an impossibly high distance into the air and punched it squarely in what might have been one of its heads.

The creature, which in its hibernation had grown to the point that it was only inches away from having its name chanted by those driven mad, was not sure how to react to this unprecedented response. In a sad way, it was almost a blessing to the poor creature that the attack was sufficient to cave in the head-like structure and spare it from trying to puzzle out an appropriate response.

In the next moment, Thesis had landed. With a gesture, two weapons appeared in his hands- both long, straight blades with serrated edges, better suited for tearing flesh than fighting an armed enemy or piercing armor. Their surface was a pure, jet black- though it seemed it was less 'black' than it was 'void of light', as if both had been forged from the vacuum of space itself. With the same wild grin as before still plastered across his face, Thesis leaped into the air, landing squarely on the monster's back. "_Come on, come on, come on! You can do better than that!"_ he roared, his laughter ringing through the air as he brought down the blades. The creature screamed in pain as its wings came crashing to the ground, and its body with them.

Not content, Thesis continued hacking away, his weapons changing size and shape as he brought them down again and again- bludgeons, spears, pickaxes, scimitars, falchions, halberds, bastard swords. At last he brought his hands together, the weapons in them merging into a single, gigantic hammer, and with a mighty swing he brought it down.

The pool of ichor and slime which had once been dangerously close to metamorphosing into a new manifestation of the horrors of the universe hissed and bubbled on the sidewalk, before fading to nothing. Thesis grinned, his weapon vanishing as he pumped his fist. "Ah, it's always nice to-"

He turned, only to see a very angry Adrian, whose clothes were covered with elder god remains. "Ehe. Sorry, Seventh."

Adrian's eyebrow twitched. "Thesis..."

Keen survival instincts caused Thesis to leap back, narrowly avoiding Adrian's counter-attack. Manically grinning, the world-wanderer ran from the Librarian with all the speed he could muster.

"_You will pay for this dry-cleaning, you hear me? All of it!"_

TTTTTT

_Thanks for all your patience, folks. Except more chapters to come this week! I haven't been idle, just busy splitting my time between college and work and fanfiction. Progress will be made!_

_Read and review as you like. _


	5. The Spirit's Tale

Shadowchasers: Twice-Told Tales  
By 7th Librarian

A/N: _Hello, all! Welcome back to another rousing round of Twice-Told Tales. Let's have some fun, shall we?_

TTTTTTT

"You can't complain that we never go anywhere interesting."

"No, but if this keeps happening, I am going to start screening your calls to me."

"Please. You can't resist the kitty eyes."

"I am leader of the Shadowchasers, not a fifteen-year-old girl."

"Don't make me sparkle. You know I will."

"Instead of sparkling, could you get us out of these chains?"

"Working on that." Adrian tugged with his wrists, making the chains rattle, but doing little else. "But kind of hard to gain any leverage like this."

"Can you use your magic?" Jalal asked. He and Adrian were chained back to-back, wrists above their heads and suspended in the air. He gave a few tugs at the chains, but like Adrian, found that their current position meant that he did not have enough leverage with which to exert his strength and snap the links.

"I could, I think. But there is that slight problem of what we're hanging over." The Librarian glanced down. About a hundred below the pair was a large, covered vat. He guessed it had held chemicals at one time, but now he couldn't hazard a guess. "We might break our legs smashing into the vat. Or punch through the lid and whatever is underneath us would dissolve the flesh from our bones."

"We're both immortal..." Jalal grimaced at the thought of hitting acid, anyway. He would regenerate, true, but if he was stuck in the vat when he did, he'd simply dissolve again, over and over. "Do you have any ideas?"

"Bar songs? We annoy our host with them until he just lets us go?"

"That may have worked on Xander, but I sincerely doubt it will here."

"Plotting your escape, gentleman?" The heavily-accented Germanic voice was accompanied by the sounds of boots drumming against metal. Both men turned their heads to see their host waling into view on a nearby metal catwalk. Dressed in a billow lab coat that nearly swallowed the slender man, he was flanked by two large stone golems. "I am sure you know it helpless by now, _ja_?"

"Well, no, not really." Adrian admitted. "Just wondering what's in the vat."

"Ah, vell, far be it from me deny you your wish." The man produced a remote and thumbed a button on it. A whirring noise was heard as the lid to the vat began to retract from the center. "Gaze upon my latest creations!"

Both men looked down, each lifting an eyebrow at the sight of water below. For a moment, it's surface was completely still, then several large black sharks burst free, snapping and snaring at the two dangling prisoners. But they all splashed back into the water, having missed their targets by a scant few inches. "Aren't zey beautiful?"

"Sharks. Wonderful." Adrian grimaced. "See, this is why I don't like going out to sushi with you, Jalal. I have bad experiences with sharks."

"I cannot say mine have been any less distasteful." Jalal replied calmly, watching as the sharks took several more leaps at them. "Though all in all, they are a minor annoyance aren't they?"

"Well, yeah, I suppose." Adrian agreed after a second. "I mean, my wife's best friend has a pet Lipoeroudan who seems to think I'm a bit of a snack and after dealing with that thing, I suppose sharks just really don't cut it as a threat."

The man on the walkway frowned darkly. "You seem to think that I am simply mad, _ja?_ That would simply put you a death trap so simple that a child could do it?" He slammed a fist on the walkway's railing. "That is where you vould be wrong!"

He thumbed another button on his remote and the sharks suddenly seemed to click and whir, their eyes glowing vibrantly. "I have improved upon zem!"

Adrian watched as several lasers leapt from the sharks' eyes, searing the air around him. One nearly pierced one of his ears. "Oh, sharks with lasers in their eyes. _Now_ this is a proper deathtrap. Pointless restraining of the people you should really just kill, a deathtrap that is far to elaborate and necessary and over-the-top lasers built into something that shouldn't have lasers."

"Bah! You have no idea of true genius, fool!" The man sneered and began to pace up and down the walkway. "Before you meet your demise, I will show you the true brilliance of Dr. Hateglow!"

Adrian sighed as the man began to speak steadily, pacing rhythmically between his two golems and occasionally punctuating his speech with wild gestures of his arms. "Oh great, he's monologing..."

"They do tend to do that, don't they?"

"We can probably tune him out. Looks like he's going to be at this for awhile." The Librarian's ears twitched idly. "Know any good stories?"

"None spring to mind."

"How about telling me about how you got that Great Golden Wyrm card?"

"Well, money talks, old friend."

"There's more to it than that. There has to be. No matter what dimension it is, Maximillion Pegasus doesn't just let anyone get free cards from his company. What did you do?"

"I may have helped him out..with an issue..."

Adrian sniggered at the reluctant tone in the other man's voice. "He called your office phone, didn't he?"

"Yes. And I have no idea how he knew about the Shadowchasers or got my office number."

"Pegasus is clever and sneaky like that. He did invent the game, after all. Anyway, what did happened next?"

"Well, he asked specifically for a team of Shadowjacks..."

TTTTTTT

_The Spirit's Tale__  
__  
_TTTTTTT

Another loud yelp and then a short crackle of electricity heralded the another soft sigh from Jalal. "That is the sixth Shadowjack to be ejected within the last thirty minutes..."

"We're making progress, though, sir." Seated next to the Shadowchaser leader at a control panel was a man with russet-haired man with it pulled back in a ponytail. Like so many of his fellows today, his face was smudged with dirty and bits of his hair were sticking up. Studying his screen, he punched a few keys and brought up a new window. "We've defeated about six of the programs."

"Given that they seem to be modeled after the best duelists of the age, I suppose that's all we can really hope for." Jalal looked out towards the row of hi-tech pods that were nearly filling the server room. Seventeen in total, only about eight were currently occupied and as he watched, a couple of Shadowjacks were helping their just-ejected comrade out of his pod, his hair still smoking a bit. "Peterich, are they suffering any serious injuries?"

"No, sir." Peterich leaned back in his chair so he could crane his head to get a better look at his boss. "When they lose, the programs simply eject them from the world inside that server and gives them a little zap, kind of like a kid sticking out their tongue to try and make an insult worse."

"I see...and what is keeping us from sending them straight back in?"

"The world-program itself." Peterich gestured to his screen, though the windows and information scrolling across it in various codes and scripts made little sense to Jalal. "When a person is sent to this Virtual World, what is happening is a sort of consciousness transfer. The digitized mind has a specific coding it to it, like any other program. When we lose, it locks our coding out. We send someone back in, they just wind up in a blank void." He grimaced. "We've tried hacking our way around the firewalls and everything, but we're not getting anywhere."

"What about magic?"

The Shadowjack shook his head. "Too risky, sir. This isn't a standard computer system-this is the Industrial Illusions mainframe. It's almost as delicate as the KaibaCorp one and we'd risk doing irreparable damage to it. Moreover, whatever this program that's created this Virtual World, it seems to be alive and if we piss it off, there's no telling what it'll do."

"Mmm...so we're stuck playing it's game, then?" Jalal scowled up at the massive towering I2 Mainframe, as if his sheer presence and disapproval would force whatever was in there to up and leave.

"At least the game is Duel Monsters, Jali-boy." The flowery voice preceded the game's creator as he entered the room, dressed in his traditional wine-colored suit. A light smile glided across his face as he took in the situation. "And your men seem to be rather competent at it."

Unable to tell if that was a compliment or well-veiled sarcasm or both, considering the source, Jalal decided to take it at face value. "Thank you, Mister Pegasus."

"Oh, no, no, no, my dear boy." Pegasus shook his head empathetically. "Thank _you_. If you Shadowchasers weren't around, I don't know _what_ I'd have done about this terribly awful mess. Why, it could have ruined my entire game!"

"I wouldn't go quite _that_ far..." Peterich muttered as he sorted through a few more windows on his screen. "From the looks of it, the I2 server is working just fine and this Virtual World thing is just an add-on."

"That would be because you Shadowjacks are distracting whomever is behind it." Pegasus said as he came up behind the younger man and pointed to a line of coding. "That bit there – that's part of the new game mechanic we've been working on. But now that this intruder has taken up residence in my main server, that file is locked away, hidden inside that world."

"New game mechanic?" Jalal looked a bit more interested than he had been a moment before. Prior knowledge to any adjustment to Duel Monsters meant they could work to alter the Treaty ahead of time and hopefully, head off any arguments or disputes. Hopefully.

"Oh yes." Pegasus said cheerfully. "After nearly thirty-odd years of the game we all know and love, I've decided to add a little spice to its flavor. A whole new kind of monsters and support, along with an incredible new way to summon them. It'll revolutionize the entire game."

Peterich couldn't suppress a small whistle, echoing Jalal's feelings at the moment. "So what exactly is this new mechanic?"

"My research department wants to call it 'Level Adventing', but I myself much prefer the niftier sounding 'Synchro Summoning'." The platinum-haired man said briskly. "You take a new breed of monster called a Tuner and combine its level with that of another monster on your field to bring forth a new monster from your Fusion Deck. And from that unity, a new power is born. A white-bordered monster known as a Synchro Monster! With all new effects and additions to old archetypes, it'll breathe some new life into duels and duelists everywhere." Looking positively excited, Pegasus paused for a moment to consider something. "We will have to rename the Fusion Deck to something else, since it will no longer hold just Fusions."

"As interesting as that sounds, it's not going to ever going to happen if we don't evict whatever has taken up residence in your computer system." Jalal pointed out. "Just what exactly happened? You weren't very clear over the phone..."

"I didn't want to spoil any surprises. You never know what little ears might be listening." Pegasus turned to look up at his mainframe. "As you know, Kaiba-boy's company manages the Duel Disks and the holographic imaging. The epic summon effects, the glorious battles – everything that makes my game so much fun. But even his computers can't handle something that complex for the hundreds of thousands of duelists worldwide _and_ memorize all of the card effects and rulings. So they get that information from several mutual satellites that we both own. Straight from I2 itself."

He folded his arms, looking a bit miffed. "Of course, KaibaCorp has to update their servers and everything to handle new summoning effects, monsters and graphics that we intend to go along with our release of Synchro Monsters. Unfortunately, when they did that, something or other migrated straight into the I2 sever and has taken it over."

The game's creator brightened and clapped Jalal on the shoulder. "That's when I thought of you and your wonderful Shadowchasers, Jali-boy. After all, who else is better equipped to handle such a situation than he who created the perfect organization for this kind of problem? And even has a division of supernatural computer specialists?"

"Thank you, but from the looks of things, it might have worked out better if you had called in professional duelists..." Jalal did his best not to wince as another Shadowjack was evicted from the Virtual World. Instead, he cast an eye towards Pegasus. "How did you find out about us, anyway?"

Pegasus merely chuckled in response, wagging a finger chidingly. "I couldn't possibly tell you that, Jali-boy. It'd ruin this old man's mystique."

"I'm older than you..." Jalal sighed quietly and then turned back to Peterich. "Give me a status update."

"On it." Peterich tapped away at his keyboard for a long moment and then a series of pictures appeared across his screen. "We're not sure how, but whoever is behind this program has been able to replicate the personalities and playing styles of some of the most famous duelists around. Our saving grace is that they haven't apparently kept things up to date with their decks – most of them seem to be using their cards from first Battle City."

"Which was over thirty years ago." Jalal confirmed and leaned over to get a back look at the screen's contents, bracing himself on the back of the Shadowjack's chair. "They still seem to be beating us, though..."

"Not by a wide margin." Peterich pointed out. "We've already beaten Mai Kujaku, Katsuya Jounouchi, Mokuba Kaiba, Anzu Masaki, Ryuji Otoogi and a group of people we've identified from some older records as the original Board of Directors for KaibaCorp." As he spoke, X's landed across the named people's pictures.

"That leaves Seto Kaiba, Yugi Mouto..." Jalal grimaced as he saw that there two pictures of the youth, though the second was of a much older and more-serious looking version of the King of Games. "Pharaoh Atem...and..." A frown crossed his face at the one picture that simply had a silhouette. "Who is that?"

"We don't know." Peterich admitted. "No one has been able to reach him. The other duelists we've found just by wandering around and they all seem to hang out in a set area. But this guy seems to be at the center of the world and has actually some sort of maze and Duel Monsters guards around him."

"We did catch a glimpse of them, though. It took us a few tries to beat Mokuba Kaiba, surprisingly, but he was on this blimp and during one duel, it passed over the center of the Virtual World." A few keystrokes later and he brought a rather fuzzy image of a figure standing atop a tall tower. Nearly everything about them was indistinct, except for their oddly green-and-blue colored hair.

"Oh my..." Pegasus looked thoughtful as he studied the image. "You know, Yugi-boy regaled me some tales about his own trips to Virtual Worlds once...said that on his second one, he encountered a young man claiming to be Gozaburo's biological son. And that figure does share that boy's unique hair..."

"So all of this is because of a child throwing a tantrum?" Jalal scowled.

"It would appear so..." The game's creator glanced down at the screen and back up at the server. "What puzzles me is how the lad survived. According to Yugi-boy, the undersea base that the poor lad was housed in was destroyed at the end of their adventure."

"Well, computer data can't really be destroyed unless whatever is housing it is physically destroyed." Peterich explained. "And if this Virtual World Yugi went in had them duel, then the information for everything had to come from I2 and KaibaCorp. My guess is that when the systems linked up, bits and pieces of data of their personalities were left behind. The idea of sentient data is relatively new, but if it were, I'd wager dollars to donuts that the leftover data has been acting on instinct, trying to 'heal' by pulling itself together and when the upgrade to the KC systems happened, it finally managed it."

He blinked as both Pegasus and Jalal were staring at him. "What? I'm a Shadowjack. This is my area of expertise, remember?"

"So is it really Gozaburo's biological son, then? If we're right about that thing being full sentient, then this changes everything. We can't simply just delete another living being like that." Jalal narrowed his eyes a bit. "It goes against everything we stand for."

"I agree and it certainly would be a waste a second...or, rather, third chance at life." Pegasus nodded to himself. "I wonder if we can offer the boy a job here. I'm sure he'd be absolutely wonderful at managing my computer system, give all the trouble he's causing."

Resisting the urge to sigh at the billionaire's train of thought, Jalal gestured towards Petrich for answer to his question.

The Shadowjack shrugged. "I can't really say for sure, boss. Whatever is creating this Virtual World and the duelists is hella complex, but it's not unreasonable to suggest that can't be done from the outside. The only way to confirm that that Kaiba-thing in the center is truly sentient would be to confront it directly. And like I said, we just can't get close to it."

"It seem the big problem is that it has total control of that world and we're forced to play by its rules." Pegasus pointed out. "And since you have already shot down using magic, it seems we will have to take up your idea of finding some professional duelists, Jali-boy."

"Not necessarily." Jalal folded his arms confidently. "Before I came here, I put in a call to our specialist. She should be arrive momentarily."

"Specialist?...oh no, not her." Peterich groaned. "Jalal, you can't be serious."

"She's the best we have for this kind of situation and the only one who can met that being in there on equal terms." He insisted. "Even if she is a little bit...weird."

"Hmmm?" Pegasus glanced between the two curiously. "Just who are you discussing?"

"They're discussing a friend of mine." A voice from the entrance called out and all three men turned to see a woman dressed in a flattering Oriental-style dress walking towards them, a gray plastic box tucked under her arm. "Sorry about the wait, Jalal. I had to track down a copy of _Pokemon: Rainbow 7__th__: Origin of Origins_ to lure her home with."

"I'm just glad you got here, Tsukihime." Jalal replied and blinked in surprise. "They're still making Pokemon games?"

"Yep. Rumor has it that they're just going to skip the next game and release an entire console dedicated to the franchise. The number has gotten over one thousand, you know." Tsukihime smiled as Pegasus stepped up and grabbed her hand, planting a kiss on the back. "Pegasus, good to see you again."

"As it is to see you, fair lady." The platinum-haired man straightened. "Thank you for assistance in dealing with that nasty lady Red Shroud. What a horrible lady she turned out to be."

"'Lady' does her too much credit, Pegasus. And he called me, Jalal. I didn't introduce him to the Shadowchasers." Tsukihime added at Jalal's mildly confused look. "And it wasn't Red Shroud herself, just one of her envoys being greedy. It was in my report."

"I will have to read them closer." Jalal admitted.

"Probably a wise idea. Now, then, let's get to business." Tsukihime pulled the box out around in front of it, revealing that it was, in fact, not a box, but an 8-bit Nintendo Entertainment System. "Alright, Kenshin, time to get work."

Pegasus opened his mouth to ask whether or not the game system was actually alive when the 'Power' button pressed itself and a huff came from seemingly nowhere.

"_I am in right in the middle of trying to catch Lugia! Can't this wait?"_

"No, it can't. We're in the Industrial Illusions mainframe and someone's taken it over. We need you to go in and get them out, please." Tsukihime informed her.

"_Get one of the Shadowjacks do it! I'm busy!" _

"Kenshin..."

"_Hey, YOU got me the game, Tsuki! Don't try and make me stop playing it now!"_

"Your game will have to wait."

"_Hey, some of us still have a childhood to experience! I'm not an old person like you and I want to enjoy my youth!"_

"Old...?" Tsukihime's eyebrow twitched and then a dark aura erupted around her. "That's it! You're coming out or I swear, I'll go in there and show you what this 'old person' can do!" She began to shake the game system vigorously.

"_Knock it off! You're messing up my room! And you'll break my console!"_

"We've enchanted this thing six ways from Sunday and the only way we're going to be able to hurt it if is someone finds a way to teleport it into the sun! But I wouldn't mind trying with a sledgehammer right now, trust me!" She shook the console harder. "Out! Out! Out!"

"_Alright already!"_ The console's game port opened, spilling out a beam of light that resolved into a tall, slender and vibrantly red-haired young teenager. "Geeze, I go through all that effort of finding Lugia, hitting it with False Swipe and Mean Look AND putting it to sleep, buying all those Ultra Balls and...and..."

Kenshin's voice trailed off as she caught sight of Tsukihime looming over, that dark aura still smoldering around her. Her green eyes became pinpricks. Suddenly, she was no longer on the floor and instead cowering behind the nearest person. "Save me!"

Then she blinked as she saw who she was hiding behind. "Huh? Wine-colored suit?" She craned her head up. "Platinum-colored hair?" She glanced around. "Industrial Illusions mainframe..."

A silence filled the room, broken only by Tsukihime's smoldering.

"EEEEEEEEEE! OH MY GOD! PEGASUS! EEEEEEEEEEE!" Kenshin, despite already latched around the man's waist, somehow managed to preform a glomp on him all the same, tackling him to the ground. "I CAN'T BELIEVE ITS YOU! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

"Always a pleasure to meet an energetic fan..." Pegasus gasped out as Kenshin squeezed him again.

Everyone else in the room was pointedly glancing away, while Jalal and Tsukihime had buried their faces in their palms in exasperation before both speaking in unison. "Kenshin! _CLOTHES!" _

"Huh? Oh yeah..." Kenshin blinked, as if just realizing she was as naked as a jaybrid. Hopping off Pegasus, she stood up and held out her hand. In a flash of light, a staff that was easily as tall as she was appeared in her hand. It was metallic gray in color except for the top, which had a slot for a disk or CD to be inserted, as well various video game controller buttons on it.

She twirled it once and light fell over her. When it cleared, she was wearing jeans and steel-toed boots, a shirt with the words 'Gamer Girl' above an original Nintendo controller and a jeans jacket. "There we go!"

Whirling to face Pegasus, she blushed and bowed deeply. "I'm sorry, sir! I didn't mean to embarrass you!"

"It's alright, dear girl. I am used to such things." The man said genially. "Never gotten quite the bone-crunching hug like that before, though."

"Heee~" Kenshin smiled while blushing and then bounced from foot to foot excitedly. "Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh! Can I see where the cards are made!?"

"I'd love to give you a personal tour, but I'm afraid we're in the middle of a small problem." Pegasus pointed at the tower that was his company's mainframe. "And until it's fixed-"

"I got it!" Kenshin nodded determinedly and straightened, shooting him a salute. "Leave it to me!" With that, she stepped towards the nearest console and vanished into it in a burst of light rainbow colored light.

Pegasus watched her go, chuckling. "What an eccentric lady...is she always like this?"

"Unfortunately so."

"Marvelous!"

Tsukihime and Jalal sighed.

TTTTTTT

Kenshin emerged from a portal of light, landing gracefully atop a pile of junk. "Virtual World, huh? You'd think people would use these beneficially or something, but noooo, someone's always gotta use it to try and take over the world through computers or satellites or nuclear war or bank accounts. Sheesh..."

Stowing her staff over her back, she shielded her eyes from the sun with a hand and peered around. "Let's see...a game shop, docks, a carnival and a gladiatorial ring. Pretty standard stuff for something like this...no sense of aesthetics whatsoever."

She paused when she caught sight of the giant structure dominating the center of the Virtual World. "Wow, a giant creepy ominous tower that is totally not compensating for something." She snorted in mockery. "Oh gee, where could the person behind all of this possibly be?"

Metal clattered as she deftly hoped down from her perch in a series of steps, taking a few short steps towards the tower. "Big problem is that I'm all the way over _here_ and the tower is over _there..._and pretty sure that Jalal and Pegasus want me to solve this as quick as possible, soooooo..."

Stowing her hands in her pockets, her gaze became distance before her eyes suddenly became black with dozens of green lines of ones and zeroes. All around her, the lines of the Virtual World began to stretch and elongate like they were taffy. They were pulled farther and farther until their original shape was no longer discernible and it seemed like they would simply meld together into an expanse of chaos and color.

Then the digital reality suddenly snapped back into clear focus, except now Kenshin was no longer in the junkyard but standing in front of the tower's main door.

She grinned to herself as she walked up the steps. "Who needs a Game Shark when you can just mess with the base coding with just your _mind?" _A quick try at the door revealed it was locked and she shrugged, moving her hand over to the keycard scanner nearby. "Also makes opening a digital lock easy as pie."

Little bits of light and data emitted from her palm, vanishing into the locking mechanism. A minute passed and then she stopped with a frown as it beeped at her and flashed red. "Well, _almost _as easy as pie..."

She glanced up towards the top of the tower. "Looks like the big boss isn't happy with my presence here. And he's quick on the uptake, too." A smirk tugged at the corner of her lips. "Good. I don't like boring games at all."

Stepping away from the door a few steps, she unslung her staff from her back. "And if hacking won't work, I just happen to know a key that works on _all _doors!" Her free hand danced over the staff's buttons. "Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A and Start!"

The staff glowed, transforming into a powerful-looking long sword who's hilt was a mix of deep gold and dark blue. Gripping her new weapon, Kenshin grinned and stepped back one long step as gold energy began to gather around the sword which in turn began slowly shine gold. She drew the weapon back over her shoulder. "EXXXXX-"

Golden light had completely sheathed the blade, the entire weapon nearly rattling with the sheer power it was being forced to contain. She swung the blade down.

"-CAAAALLLIIBURRRRRRRRRR!"

TTTTTTT

Pegasus watched in amusement as the screen they were using to keep track of Kenshin was briefly filled with a golden blaze of light. After a minute, it cleared to show Kenshin, whistling, walking through the now large hole where the door used to be while the sword returned to being her staff. "Well, that's one way to do a shout-out..."

Peterich, meanwhile, was looking between Kenshin's actions and his own personal screen in surprise. "This is...incredible...I'm not even sure what she did! When we logged in, we were stuck in certain areas until we we beat a duelist to unlock more of them and the duelist would hunt us down the moment we entered their territory. Or we'd get mobbed by Rare Hunters. But she just...ignored of all that. Even the firewall! And the door just now...I can't even begin to..."

"Don't bother trying, then." Tsukihime informed him as she seated herself in a nearby chair, lounging against the console. "Kenshin is a living spirit of technology-this kind of thing shouldn't be too surprising. It's not different than humans and Incanifers, essentially. They can both do magic, but one just does it better."

"While I'm glad to see that Kenshin has garnered some mastery over her magic, I have to ask..." Jalal was leaning against another console, his arm folded as he watched the screen. "But how's her combat training been coming?"

"Kind of so-so. Everytime it's Rayearth's turn to spar with her, she just retreats back into her console and refuses to come out." Tsukihime told him. "Why you ask?"

He pointed at the screen, where several large mechanical spiders were dropping out of the walls and shadows to surround Kenshin. "She's going to be a little trouble in a moment..."

TTTTTTT

"Oohhh, coooooollll!" Kenshin watched nearly a couple of the score of mechanical spiders surrounded her. Each was one the size of a medium dog, but their glowing red eyes and mechanical chattering and scuttling made them far more menacing. "I thought I'd have to fight regular robots, but you guys are a refreshing change!"

One of them leapt up at her from behind, but she gripped her staff like a baseball bat and slammed the spider into a wall where it crashed to the floor in a broken heap. "But the paint job is really lackluster. Seriously, just leaving it as plain metal? Then what's the point of making mechanical spiders?"

Several of them braced themselves and opened their mouths wide, steel cables flying out and wrapping around her deftly. Tight enough to keep her from falling over despite binding her arms and legs, Kenshin grimaced as she found her strength unable to budge them. "Of course...right..."

She glanced down at her staff and her eyes glowed, the buttons for the Konami Code punching themselves in. The weapon glowed and transformed into a short, handle-like object. Grinning, she thumbed a button on it and with a '_snaphissss!'_, a purple energy blade extended from it. "Lightsaber! Ooh, I got purple this time!"

Deftly flicking her wrist, she easy freed herself from the cables. A swift slash and a quartet of spiders were suddenly missing their heads. Twisting around another fired cable, she cut it apart and lunged, cleaving the offending spider into two neat pieces.

Metal limbs and sparks flew as she tore her way through several more of the spiders and then had to skid to a stop as the lightsaber reverted back to her staff. "Rats...I keep forgetting that doesn't last for more than a few swings with each weapon..."

Using the staff as a brace, she pole-vaulted herself up and out of the crowd of spiders that had gathered around her. Even as they all began to turn and scuttle towards her, she plucked something from one of the cases at her belt. It was a Gameboy Advance Cartridge and she slide it into the slot on her staff, slamming a finger on the 'Start' button. "Kenshin a-go-go, baby!"

An orb of light swallowed her up.

TTTTTTT

Kenshin stood in absolute darkness and then suddenly an explosion of light erupted behind her, tracing a checkerboard grid on the ground beneath her. Her staff morphed into white light that swallowed her up as she struck a pose.

The light began to fade away, revealing her now to be wearing a red helmet with a tine curving back on the top. It covered everything by her face and the angular visor she had left only her mouth visible. A length of black and white hair shot down her back, the tip nearly brushing her ankles.

Sleek red armor covered her lower legs and arms, with a black bodysuit covering the rest until it reached the her chestplate. A circle of gold appeared there, before becoming becoming emblazoned with a white and dark half separated by a jagged line.

Kenshin snapped out her right arm, the hand morphing into a circular hilt that spat out a glowing red energy sword. She struck a pose, the grid underneath her feet lighting up. "The ace soldier! !"

TTTTTTT

The light scattered away as Kenshin leapt free, a swift slash from her sword-arm decimating a pair of the spiders. More blows produced similar results, but they kept on coming and she yelped as one of them jumped up and snared itself in her hair. "HEY!"

Tearing it free, she stabbed it and another one before pulling her sword free and kicking the remains into the advancing army. She grimaced as she heard more clanking and a quick glance over her shoulder showed some of the spiders had taken to climbing across the walls and were coming down behind her. "Can't let them surround me again..."

Drawing her sword across her chest an angle, she tensed and then launched forwards in a blur. The spiders barely had time to react even as a series of slashed ones exploded sharply, sending parts and smoke into the air.

Kenshin skidded to a stop. "Sword Chip, Download!" Her left hand morphed into a hilt and spat out a blue blade. Crossing her weapons in front of her, she charged into the advancing row of spiders.

Energy flashed and metal flew as she hacked away at them even as they swarmed her. But they were learning, jumping at her in groups to overwhelm her or targeted ones leaping aside as others fired cables to exploit her openings.

She slashed several cables apart, rolling forwards to avoid one to aimed at the back of her head. "Taking too long one by one...Wide Sword Chip, download!" Her right sword glowed, becoming a touch longer and the blade more arrow-shaped. A big smile split her face as she swiped towards one of the spiders and the weapons arc extended itself, shearing through three more. "Alright!"

Three more swipes cleared a small circle around herself and she straightened, starting to spin in place like a top. Faster and faster, until a small tornado of wind had surrounded her and began to pull spiders into it. Many of them began to scuttle away or fired their cables to haul themselves to another floor, but the tornado's pull was too strong and they were drawn into it inevitably.

What came flying out were bits of spider in various stages of dismemberment.

Finally, it died down and Kenshin staggered a step, shaking out her head. "oooh, bit dizzy...still, it got the job done and since a cleared out all of the little guys for this stage..."

There was metallic rumble and she jumped back as half-dozen cables shot out of the darkness above and buried themselves into the floor where she had been standing. The clanking of gears and metal heralded the arrival of a massive, car-sized version of the enemies she had just defeated. "The mini-boss shows up, right on time!"

She didn't seem bothered as the mechanical monstrosity shrieked at her and clacked its fangs menacingly. "Yeah, I know, but I gotta wrap this up quick, soooo...Long Sword Chip, Download!"

Light surrounded her form faintly and then her hands returned to normal as the swords vanished. The light doubled in size and then traveled up and above her, transforming into a blazing pillar that was roughly the shape of a traditional sword...if the blade was six times the length of the 'hilt'. "Program Advance! Life Sword!"

Gripping the massive weapon, she pulled and let gravity do most of the work as she brought it down straight on the advancing mecha and carving out a line along the wall and floor from the force of the swing. The spider froze in mid-motion and then began to spark, exploding violently.

Kenshin coughed and waved away the smoke from its destruction as she glowed and reverted back to her original form. "What is in machines like that make them produce smoke like a forest fire when they explode...? They're metal, not organic."

Slinging her staff across her back, she paused as she saw something glint nearby. "A treasure chest?"

Indeed it was. An old-fashioned pirate-style treasure chest that looked decidedly out of place amongst the modern, _wrecked_ furnishings of the lobby. It glinted again, almost like it was winking at her.

"Hey, I'm liking this place more and more." Striding over to the chest, the Shadowchaser kicked it open. To her surprise, it was nearly empty save for a single stack of something that immediately glowed and rose up to face-level. "Convenient."

Pulling the stack out of the air, she fanned it out in front of her and a big grin began to spread across her face. "They're Duel Monsters cards...and its like they've been made specifically for me!"

Letting out a small squee, she bounced on her feet and clutched them to her chest before stowing them in a pocket on her jacket and sprinting for the elevator. "If this how the guy behind all of this plays his games, I can't wait to meet him in person!"

TTTTTT

The elevator doors 'dinged' open and the first then Kenshin noticed when she stepped out of it was the person standing across the way. Hair of varying shades of green and teal, a sneer on their face, a determined glint in their eye and..."Wow, you're short for a kid!"

"I am not a 'kid', I'm a genius, if you would be so kind to remember that!" He barked. "And rest assured, I'm working on a way to speed up nature's process in order to circumvent my lack of height."

"Kay." Kenshin glanced around the rooftop before returning her gaze to him. "You're the one behind all of this?"

"That's right- I woke up and found myself here. And after a little experimentation, I learned I could manipulate this world with but a thought! Shaped to my whims, my desire and all guided by my genius!" He gave her a mocking bow. "I am Kaiba, master of all you see here and soon to be master of much, much more."

"I'm Kenshin and I'm afraid I really can't let you do that whole 'much, much more' thing. You've caused enough problems as it is." She shook her head to emphasis.

"You are interesting, I have to say...you're not like the people who were trying to come here earlier. They couldn't even handle the simple tests I put in there way. But you... you can manipulate this world almost as well as I can." Kaiba narrowed his eyes. "Tell me, how are you able to do that?"

"It's because I'm special and more than a little bit awesome!" She did a little twirl and grinned at him.

"I see...just a fool enjoying the pleasures that are suited to five-year olds." Kaiba waved a dismissive hand to her.

"And you're a walking ego with a salad for hair. What's your point?" Kenshin shrugged.

"My point is that whatever powers you posses, would be better utilized under _my_ genius and not your...playful, sunshine-and-lollipops attitude." He lifted his arm, a glow surrounding it that materialized into the latest model of Duel Disk. "I know that this game is used to resolve disputes on the outside world. I want your power and you want me to stop my control of this world."

He sneered. "I know a lower intellect such as yours isn't a match for me, but I'm offering you a one-million-chance to try and surpass me."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Talk is cheap, but since I wouldn't feel right beating up a little kid to kick you of these computers, I'll take your challenge!" Kenshin produced her duel disk from out of nowhere, shuffling the deck she had gotten from the treasure box and slamming it home. The action triggered the device, which beeped as it slid into active mode. "Let's Duel!"

"This won't be a duel, it'll be a massacre." Kaiba promised as he drew his opening hand. "And once I defeat you, I'll add your data to myself and become even stronger! Strong enough to take over this computer world completely!"

Tearing a sixth card free from his deck, he grinned darkly at what he saw. "Perfect! First, I activate Reinforcement of the Army, which lets me add a level four or lower Warrior to my hand from my deck!" His deck spat out a card, which he snared and slapped down. "I summon Zombyra The Dark Hero!"

"Huh? Dark Hero?" Kenshin blinked in surprise a shadow passed over her.

The figure casting the shadow landed in front of Kaiba. He was a tall, powerfully built figure in a blue-costume. Bone-like armor covered nearly all of it, including his face and a massive cape billowed around him. (2100/500)

"Oh, that guy?" Kenshin cocked her head and grinned a bit. "He's cool-looking, but I know all about his effect. He's got great stats, but is pretty weak in the effect department. A flash in the pan."

"Zombyra was a warrior of darkness, but found a new purpose in defending innocents with those same dark powers. Now he battles against evil, even as his own power threatens to kill him. He is a true hero!" Zombyra stuck a prose as Kaiba clenched his fist. "Do not mock him!"

"Uh...huuhh..." Kenshin shrugged. "Still your move."

"I'll show you!" A magic card materialized on his field and suddenly, Zombyra's gauntlets were surrounded by flames. "I equip my Dark Hero with Dragon Gauntlets- Ifrit! Not only do these new powers negate his effects, but when he destroys a monster as result of battle, you take five hundred more damage!"

"That's not bad." The Shadowchaser put a hand on her hip. "But if you're going to be using a guy like that, shouldn't you have taken the second turn?"

"Shouldn't you learn not mock your superior!" Kaiba slammed a card into his disk. "Quick Attack forces my monster to attack immediately, ignoring anything that would prevent it from doing so!"

"What!?" Kenshin's eyes nearly bugged out of her head as the hero slammed his fists together, the flames on his arms flaring in response. "Cheesebaskets!"

"Zombyra! Show her the strength of a hero! _Dragon Fists!_" Zombyra dashed across the field, slamming a one-two-three combination into Kenshin that doubled her over, snapped her head back and sent her crashing backwards in a heap. (KLP: 5900) "Still think my hero is lame now!?"

"Ow...ow...ow..." Kenshin got to her feet, wisps of smoke rising from the bruises she had gotten. Then she shook it off and grinned wildly, shooting Kaiba thumbs up. "Good shot! Sorry I underestimated you!"

"Hu..you..." Kaiba growled as he slid a card into his disk, a flash of light heralding its arrival behind Zombyra. "Don't you think is fun, girl! Or I'll crush you like a bug! One card face-down and end of turn!"

"Talking like that – you're taking yourself too seriously! This is a game and no matter the stakes, if you can't have fun at the game, you're always going to lose! Draw!" Kenshin snapped the card free and the field slot on her disk opened. She slid the drawn card into it and slammed it shut. "I activate Adventure Setting- Crossroads Inn!"

The air around them warped and twisted, placing the two in the center of a medieval-style inn. A fireplace was the only illumination and crossed swords and decorative shields hung on the wooden walls. "Check it out! This is the place where the heroes meet to begin the campaign! So since you have a monster in play and I don't, I can summon an Adventurer monster straight from my deck to the field!"

A beam of light flashed out of her deck and splashed onto the field front of her, resolving into a tall warrior in light plate armor and a jagged scar down one side of his face. A pair of broadswords were sheathed on his belt. "Meet Adventurer Warrior- Varenstale the Broadsword!" (1900/1500)

"Then I'll summon Adventurer Mage- White Kyfu!" From the tables around the dueling field, the sounds of a chair sliding back where heard and then the monster stepped into the firelight. He was a tall youth, barely out of his teens and dressed in light robes of varying white. Leaning slightly on his staff of gnarled oak, he gave the tiniest of smiles. (1500/1500)

"Neither of your monsters can compare to Zombrya's might!" The hero nodded and flexed his muscles in agreement.

"We'll see about that! Kyfu attacks Zombrya! _White Magic Burst!"_ Kyfu responded to the order by charging headlong at Zombrya, whipping his staff through the air and volleying a small series of blasts from the ends.

"Idiot! Your own monster will die!" Zombyra swatted the blasts aside with ease, but then Kaiba blinked as he felt a weight suddenly appear in his hand. He glanced down and saw that it was a die. "Why do I have this!?"

"Because I activated my quick-play card. Offensive Initiative!" Kenshin grinned and held up her own die "I can only activate this when I declare an attack with an Adventurer monster! Now we roll for the initiative! If my roll is higher, I can add the attack of another Adventurer monster to my attacker!"

"And if my roll is higher?" Kaiba scowled at her, not liking the look on her face or the fact she was playing around like this.

"Then I take double damage from my monster's death! So let's roll!" Kenshin whipped her dice across the field, the small object bouncing and clattering across the wooden floor before it finally came to a halt. "Alright! I got a three!"

"I'll bet that easily!" Kaiba tossed his own die into the air and they both watched it descend, skipping across the inn's floor to land near Kenshin's die. "A two!?"

"Booyah! Now my Kyfu's attack goes up!" Zombyra knocked the last blast aside as Kyfu reached him. The mage slammed his staff into the hero, staring as wooden weapon simply 'thunked!' uselessly off the other man's armor. He gave a sheepish grin as Zombrya looked down at him and cracked his knuckles.

Then steel rang through the air as Varenstale leapt over the mage, his blades flashing. Nothing happened for a moment, then Zombyra's head flew off. (KLP: 6700)

"Yes, that got him! I-" Kenshin gave a shriek as Zombyra suddenly grabbed his head out the air, placing it atop his neck. After a few seconds of readjusting it, he rolled his head like nothing happened. "AHHHHH! ZOMBIE FREAK!"

Kaiba snickered cruelly at her reaction. "Of course he can do things like that – he's Zombyra! And in case you're wondering how that works in game terms-" He gestured to his now face-up trap card. "Power Guard equips to Zombyra after activation and I can send a card equipped to Zombyra to the graveyard to negate his destruction."

"I don't care how it works – that's just creepy!" Kenshin shook her head to rid her brain of the image, then grabbed a card from her hand. "I'll set this and end my turn! I'll take care of that freak on my turn!"

"I told you – do not mock Zombyra!" Kaiba snapped and drew for his turn. Then his Power Guard shattered. "I can destroy Power Guard to add an equip card that refers to Zombyra in its text from my deck to my hand!"

Catching the card his deck spat out, he held it up. "I equip Zombyra with Devil Wings- Icarus!" The card morphed into twin streams of light that flashed out onto the field and onto the hero's back. There, they sprouted into gruesome-looking wings, the fathers seemingly made out of some kind of black demonic flesh. "This raises his attack by three hundred and lets him attack twice during the Battle Phase! _Devil Falcon!" _(2100-2400)

"Ooohh...craappp...!" Kenshin braced herself as with a flap of his new wings, Zombrya flew up in the air and then dove towards her side of the field, fist extended. Black energy wrapped around that fist and when the hero crashed into ground, he was nothing more than a streak of explosive energy that kicked up a dust cloud.

"That is what you get for-" Kaiba started as dust cloud vanished, revealing Kyfu standing and shaking out his robes. And then his face twisted in a snarl as he saw Kenshin's life point counter. "What kind of crap is this!?"

"Ehehehe..."Kenshin coughed out a bit of dirt and gave him a dusty smile. "Varenstale prevents all other Adventurer monsters from dying in battle and Kyfu, as long as I have at least two of them in play, turns all Battle Damage I would receive into life point gain." (KNLP: 7300)

"And I attacked that mage first to inflict more damage..." The green-haired youth growled as Zombyra's muscles lost a little definition, as his effect kicked in and drained him of a few points. (2400-2200) "But since I destroyed a monster, I can activate the secondary effect of Devil Wings! _Devil Eye!_"

"What are-" Kenshin 'eeped' as suddenly four red eyes opened up from the feathers on the wings. They each fired a beam of light and she staggered as they struck, the blasts having left little red marks on her skin. "OW!" (KNLP: 6500)

"When Zombyra destroys a monster while equipped with Devil Wings, he inflicts you two hundred points of damage times its level!" Kaiba glanced at the remaining cards in his hand, then plugged one onto disk. "This set card ends my turn!"

"Draw!" Kenshin drew, sliding the card amongst her hand cards. "I summon Adventurer Mage- Black Fallhaze!" A swirl of shadows bleed from the surrounding inn, gathering together and revealing a lanky, pale-skinned elf. He wore heavy black robes that almost seemed to swallow him up and his staff was black iron, the top jagged and twisted with a ruby in the center. (1400/1600)

"Then I activate Cross-Class Manual!" The card shimmered into existence behind Fallhaze. "Now I discard one Adventurer from my deck and an effect activates on my targeted monster depending on the class of the discarded monster!" She held up a monster before chucking it into the graveyard. "I choose Adventurer Rogue- Twin Fang!"

Fallhaze slung his staff over his back, a pair of wicked-looking shadow daggers appearing in his hands. "Since he's learned how to fight like a rogue, he can halve his attack points to attack you directly! _Black Daggers!"_

Kaiba watched as the black mage faded back into the shadows. "Where is he-" Then he grunted and dropped to a knee as Fallhaze reappeared behind him, driving both daggers driving into his back. "You dare to strike me!" He lashed out, but Fallhaze was already fading away and then a groaning noise yanked his attention back to the playing field. "Zombrya!" (KLP: 6000)

The hero was groaning, kneeling on one knee and clutching his chest. "What did you do to him!?" (2200-1500)

"When Fallhaze deals you battle damage, one monster on your field looses that damage in attack points!" Kenshin pointed. "Sorry, Kyfu, but we need to get rid of this guy! _White Magic Blasts!_"

"Zombyra is still strong enough to defeat your monster!" Kyfu rushed the weakened hero, smashing his glowing staff into the other monster's head while at the same Zombrya punched his fist through the mage's chest. Both of them exploded into dust. "And you still take damage from Devil Wings!"

Kenshin winced sharply as the wings managed to blast her before they faded away. (KNLP: 5700) "I activate the trap card Loot the Bodies! Since an Adventurer monster destroyed one of yours in battle, I can draw two cards!" She snapped them free of her deck and added them to her hand.

"You'll pay for what you did to Zombrya! How dare you profit from his death!?" Kaiba snarled. "Reverse card open! Dark Hero's End and Legacy! This trap card not only destroys one of your cards when you destroy Zombrya, but lets me add one of three specific cards from my deck to my hand!" As he pulled the card he wanted free from his deck, the trap morphed into a bolt of power that tore across the field and smashed into their surroundings, blasting the inn into dust.

"Hey, I liked it in there!" With a bit of a scowl, Kenshin slid a card into her disk. "I set this card and end my turn!"

"Draw!" Kaiba yanked the card off his deck, his hand already grabbing for a different one in his hand. "I summon Warrior of Zera to my field in attack mode!" A heavily muscled warrior appeared out of the nothingness in front of him, wearing green armor and blue pants. His sword was a pale blue color and its hilt vaguely reminded Kenshin of another monster she had seen. (1600/1600) "Next, I'll give him the card I got from my trap card!"

The Warrior didn't seem surprised as Zombyra's cape suddenly appeared around his shoulders, billowing in the breeze. "The normal spell card Dark Hero's Inspiration can only be activated by targeting one normal monster on my field while Zombyra is in my graveyard! That monster gains Zombyra's attack points!" The Warrior's muscles bulged with power. (1600-3700) "Attack and destroy her pathetic Adventurer! _Legacy Fist!_"

Kenshin braced herself as the Warrior charged, socking her mage so hard his head bounced cratered the ground before he shattered. (KNLP: 3400) "My monsters can pass on their legacies, too! The trap Legacy Adventurer activates when you destroy an Adventurer monster! It summons itself as a monster card and equips itself with the monster you just destroyed!" The trap morphed into an average-looking man, who didn't seem surprised as Fallhaze's cloak appeared around him and the mage's staff was in his hands. (500/500-1900/2100)

"You can set up your weak monsters as often as you like, I'll tear right through them!" Kaiba huffed in irritation as the Warrior of Zera returned to his field, slumping a little. "My Warrior isn't Zombyra, so he cannot control the dark power as well as the cape's original owner." (3700-2900)

He flicked a glance over his cards and then sneered a bit. "I can't damage you anymore this turn, so I'll let you off easy! End of turn!"

"Draw!" The Shadowchaser bit her lip slightly as she added the card to her hand and studied her options. (_This deck doesn't have any big monsters that I can easily summon...) _Her eye caught a card at the far end of her hand. (_This might help!)_ "I activate Random Encounter!"

A red die with black dots appeared in her hand. "Here's how this card works! If I roll 1, I can special summon a monster from my hand! If I roll 3, I can look at the top three cards of my deck and summon one from there! A 5 lets me summon one from the graveyard! And the even numbers do the same things for you!"

"So you've got a fifty-fifty chance of getting a positive result, do you?" Kaiba narrowed his eyes. "One or two weaklings, I'll crush them all!"

"We'll just see about that!" Kenshin threw the die across the field, a grin spreading across her face as it landed on a three. "Looks like Lady Luck favors me!"

She pulled the top three cards of her deck free and after glancing over them a few times, yanked out the center one and slapped it onto her disk. "I choose Adventurer- White Leopoli in defense mode!" Unlike her previous white mage, Leopoli was a tall, slender woman with red hair in a white robe with blue trim. Her staff was organic-looking, like a living white tree wrapping its branches around a sapphire. (1600/1400)

Shuffling the other two cards into her deck, she tossed down one of the remaining cards in her hand. "Then I summon Adventurer Mage- Black Annalissa!" Like her recent monster, this mage was female. But she was dressed in a low-cut top and tight leggings, a crimson cape flowing from her shoulders as she held a black staff topped with a trio of emeralds. (1200/1800)

"What good does summoning those three weaklings do?" Kaiba regarded the three magic users with distaste.

"Alone, nothing, but they can allow me to use this spell card! Go! Party Formation- Magic Over Might!" The card appeared in the air above her, its picture showing all four of the mages she had used in the duel crossing their staves. "I can only use this card if I have three or more Adventurer Mage monsters in play!"

Mimicking the card's image, her monsters crossed their staves and their respective gemstones began to glow. "Now I can look at the top five cards of my deck and add one spell card among them to my hand! The rest are shuffled into my deck!" She fanned out cards in front of her and did a little skip at what she saw. "Perfect!"

Kaiba growled as a series of giant glowing green swords fell from the sky, pinning his monster and field in place. "Hiding behind the Swords of Revealing Light? I suppose I shouldn't expect any less from a weakling who doesn't know her place!"

"Talk is cheap! You want to prove you're better, bring it to the duel field!" Kenshin folded her arms and smirked. "End of turn!"

"Draw!" The boy glanced at the card. "I activate Trade-In, discarding a level eight monster to draw two cards!" He drew twice more and a dark smile flitted across his face. "You think you're safe behind your swords?"

"Well...yeah!" Kenshin nodded. "You can't attack me while they're in play and even if you got rid of them, you still all three of my monsters to contend with!"

"You think too small. Battles between monsters and effect damage aren't the only way to hurt the opponent!" Kaiba's field slot popped open and he slammed a card into it. "I activate City of The Twilight- Limbo!"

The space around the duelists transformed again, buildings shooting skywards and then expanding outwards to form the rest of the city. Off to one side, a giant statue of Zombyra in a heroic pose rose up while streetlights popped on to reveal the pair where in the city square. Kenshin suppressed a shiver as she glanced around. The city was eerily quiet and shadowed, the sky a maze of violet, black and blue light without a single star in the sky. "What the hell happened to this city?"

"Limbo is the city of the twilight, teetering on the edge of plunging into total chaos and warfare or taking the first step towards becoming an example of light and hope. This is the city that Zombrya chose to protect." Kaiba lifted his hand into the air. "But to understand hope, you must first have a powerful grasp of despair! I activate one of the effects of Limbo!"

"What, it has multiple effects!?" Kenshin's question went unanswered as the ground around them began to rumble and crack. Bloody light spilled outwards and she shrieked as demons and blackened skeletons began to pull themselves free of the cracks. Where ever they touched, the buildings and features of the city began to crumble and fall, whatever was left standing becoming covered in twisted flesh. Her shriek nearly became a scream as she saw the patch of flesh nearest to her had nearly a dozen eyes and inverted mouth, pulsing and writhing. "The hell is this!?"

"Hell!" Kaiba smiled darkly, the blighted light giving his features a demonic cast. "My City of Limbo has changed its name and it is now treated as Pandemonium!" He yanked a card from his hand and slapped it onto his disk. "Which means my Warrior of Zera now falls into darkness!"

The Warrior's blade clattered to the ground as he clutched at his head. The armor he wore began to pulse and shift, binding itself to his flesh and warping into great wings. His entire body heaved violently and doubled in size, muscles swelling to far beyond human limits. The new creature celebrated its birth by throwing back his head and roaring, the act kicking up a shockwave that shoved Kenshin back a foot and shattered whatever remaining windows the surrounding blocks had. "Mazera Deville!" (2800/2300)

"Hey, big guy..." Kenshin smiled nervously as the demon settled his eyes on her. "N-n-nice p-pants.." Light glinted as he raised a clawed hand and she yelped, ducking down and holding her arms over her head as Mazera slashed the air, dark rips of energy hurtling towards her. "ACKIES!"

After a moment, she felt not impact or pain. "Huh..." Standing up, she examined herself and scratched her head. "What was that all about-t-t-t-t-t..." She trailed off, realizing that she was scratching herself with her left hand...which was currently empty. "MY CARDS!"

"Idiot. When Mazera Deville is summoned, you have to discard three cards from your hand! I told you, there are other ways to hurt the opponent!" Kaiba brushed some of his green hair out of his face, his eyes cold. "I set one card face-down and end my turn!"

Kenshin glanced down at her deck, taking a deep breath and letting it out slow. (_Okay..so all I've got between my monsters and that big ugly thing over there is an easily-destroyed spell card...I have no cards in my hand and I'm trapped in a city literally gone to hell.)_ She gulped as she reached for her deck. _(But Shadowchasers do stuff like this all the time, right? So easy-peasy...)_

Plucking the card free, she glanced at it..and then grinned widely. "Alright! I got Pot of Greed!" Sliding the card into her disk, the laughing green jar appeared in front of her. "Now I can draw two cards!" The jar shattered as she drew again.

"I move Annalissa and Legacy Adventurer to defense mode..." The two named monsters sat down, the former leaning on her staff and the latter resting it across his knees. "Then I summon Adventurer Rogue- Silentknife!" The rustling of a cloak was only thing that heralded the arrival of this monster, who simply stepped out of the shadows. His hood was down, revealing black hair and a golden eye, the remainder of his face covered by crisscrossing bandages. (1400/1000)

"He may not talk much, but considering his job, he doesn't need to! Normally, he could attack you directly by halving his attack points, but since I have four members in my party, he can do it at full strength! _Deadly Knife Blow!_"

"What!?" Kaiba stepped back as the Rogue jumped into the air, leaping from a mailbox to a car to a streetlight, then up to a building side and sprinting along it towards him. He watched as the monster jumped down at him, vanishing from view from mid-way. Then he yelped as something pierced his ribs, before he lashed out and attempted to swat his attacker away. "You wretch-!" (KLP: 4600)

"Sorry, too slow." The spirit chuckled as her Rogue appeared back on her field. "Maybe next turn, right? Mine's over for now, though."

"One lucky topdeck and you think you can mock me!?" Kaiba drew sharply. "You forget who is in charge!" The card he had drawn was slammed into his disk. "Go! Soul Advent!"

Kenshin blinked as shadow fell across the playing field and she glanced up to see Zombyra standing atop the partially-ruined, but still standing clocktower, arms folded across his chest. "How did he get back into play!?"

Kaiba ignored her, watching as Mazera caught sight of the hero. The demon roared, taking flight as Zombyra jumped down to meet him. Their mutual punches caught each other across the face, but Mazera's was stronger as it hurled the hero into the ruins of the clocktower. With another roar, the monster dove in after him and the building began to shake from their combat.

"What are they doing? What kind of effect is this?" Kenshin demanded as bits and pieces of the structure began to wobble and topple.

"The Warrior of Zera was Zombyra's friend and it is because they are friends that Zombyra will do his best to defeat his corrupted comrade." Kaiba's fist tightened. "But in defeating his friend, Zombrya fuses with his power and becomes even stronger!" As if to prove his point, the building's shaking stopped and red and black light exploded from it. "Take his power for your own, Zombyra!"

"A fusion!?" Kenshin had to shield her eyes as a comet of light burst from the church and crashed into the ground in front of Kaiba. Lowering her hand, she stared at what stood before her. "Whoa..."

Zombrya's bone armor was now jet black, including his mask and that itself had grown wicked horns. Mazera's wings were on his back, but were ragged and torn. He wore spiked gauntlets and greaves, looking like they could inflict damage no matter how they hit. The Warrior of Zera's sword was in his left hand, but ribboned with some kind of ichor and shadow, pulsing with power. To top it off, a bone tail whipped and cracked behind him, the end of it a wicked-looking axehead. (2100/1200)

Kaiba laughed and grinned. "Zombyra the Devil has conquered the power of hell and made it his own! Now with that power, he'll destroy you and your pathetic defenses!"

"You still have to-" Kenshin froze in mid-sentence as Zombrya's tail lashed through the air, smashing and shattering the glowing swords that had kept Kaiba's field in lockdown. "It destroyed my spell card!?"

"Don't you get it? He absorbed Mazera's power into himself! He can destroy _three_ cards! _Execution Tail!_" The bone tail clacked as it somehow lengthened, flashing over Kenshin's field. A second later, Leopoli and Annalissa toppled over as their heads rolled off before they shattered into triangles. "And then I'll activate his second ability!"

A phantasmal image of the Warrior of Zera appeared in front of Zombrya and the hero threw back his head and howled in rage and sorrow. "If I banish a Warrior of Zera, the memory of his friend and his fate incenses him! This adds his defense power to his attack power permanently!" Red energy surged around the fusion hero as he roared in rage again. (2100-3300)

"Over three thousand..." Kenshin took a step back, her eyes widening slightly at the feeling of anger and ferocity she was getting from the monster.

"Zombyra! Avenge your fallen friend and avenge me! Destroy her pathetic rogue! _Echo of Zera!"_ The hero's sword surged with his power and he charged across the field, slamming it into the street. Power tore free from the impact point, screaming straight towards the rogue.

"Reverse card open! Defense Draw negates the damage I receive from one battle and lets me draw one card!" The trap flipped up, just in time to catch the rest of the blast that incinerated Silentknife. Kenshin dug her heels in into the pavement, the backlash shredding both her cards like wet tissue paper as she pulled one free from her deck desperately.

Kaiba snarled, looking positively livid. "You dodge again!? Just lie down and die already!"

"Not a chance!" Kenshin steadied herself, a big smile on her face. "I'm having too much fun!"

"Fun!? You think that-" The boy managed to gain control of himself, letting out an angry, terse breath before glowering at her. "The most fun I'll have when I crush you is deleting that stupid smile off your face! End of turn!"

TTTTTT

"That poor child..." Pegasus shook his head at the image on the screen. "He's had no childhood at all, it seems."

"Mmm..." Jalal agreed, folding his arms. (_Kenshin, despite being a bit...odd, is doing better than I could have hoped for. And Kaiba, at most, seems to be ultimately a child throwing a tantrum. Albeit a powerful one. Still...)_ "Are all of these cards ones that simply haven't been released yet, Pegasus?"

"Oh, Miss Kenshin's Adventurer set is still in the prototype stages-we only have a handful of the cards actually printed." The creator of Duel Monsters quirked his lips in a smirk. "She's using them so well, though, I may just let her have the first full set for all of her assistance. Nothing better than play-testing the cards in the field."

"I like this idea." Tsukihime was seated at an empty console, her legs crossed daintily. She was also sipping a cup of tea that no one knew how she got. "Perhaps I can bribe her with new cards in exchange for dressing appropriately."

"I will have a talk with her about that, I think..." The half-dragon sighed at the look Tsukihime gave him, one that suggested that she pitied him the task, but drew enjoyment from the thought of him trying to get it done. "What about the Zombyra cards?

"Conception stage..." Pegasus' smirk became a minor frown. "And there are only a handful of them, not enough to make a full deck. It seems Mister Kaiba must be adding his own..."

"He's making his own cards?" Jalal suppressed a shudder. (_If Kaiba wins and takes complete control of the computers, he could theoretically make any card in existence...)_ Just off the top of his head, he could list nearly a dozen groups and organizations who would love to get the child to make them the rare and powerful cards for them. (_The Treaty would become a shadow of its former self if all the criminals are running around with Envoys and the like...) _"But if he can do that, shouldn't he be able to just rearrange his deck, too?"

"Not necessarily." Peterich had been busy typing away as the duel progressed, nearly a dozen windows open on his screen and nearly all of it looked utterly incomprehensible. "Both Kenshin and Kaiba have control over this Virtual World to a limited extent, but its not absolute."

"Because of their human minds, yes?" The Shadowjack glanced over at Tsukihime, the succubus sipping her tea. "Sentient creatures instinctively known that there are laws governing things, even if they don't know what those laws are. Some things simply cannot be done or challenged and the more one learns, the more ingrained in the subconscious the idea that these laws are absolute."

"Clever lady." The younger agent tipped his head at her in acknowledgment. "They both still think like that, even while digital data. Unlike a true computer program, they aren't pure logic. They understand that they _could_ change their decks for whatever they wanted, but probably can't because you can't do so in the real world."

"I think its more their sense of fair play than anything else." Pegasus chuckled a bit. "Kaiba-boy there may have some anger issues, but he's done nothing that no true gamer wouldn't do. He wants to prove he is superior, the best there is and doing so via cheating would prove nothing at all. His pride is quite impressive."

"It's also causing us problems and could potentially lead to disaster." Jalal pointed out. "But I think you're right...lets just hope he keeps thinking that way." A glance at the screen showed Kenshin still recovering from the backlash for the most recent attack. "Because he's hitting her with everything he has and with all that anger behind it, I don't doubt its just one step away from lethal...whether Kaiba realizes that or not."

TTTTTTT

"Alright, my draw!" Kenshin drew, giving her a total of two cards. (_All I have is my Legacy Adventurer..the spell card I got works with a__n__ Adventurer Mage in play, but the Black Mage effect isn't good right now. I need the White Mage one!) _"I set one monster in defense mode and end my turn!"

"That's right, all you have left are your pathetic defenses!" Kaiba drew and then slapped down the card. "I summon Warrior Dai Grepher in attack mode!" A burly warrior armed with a shining blue blade appeared, looking ready for a fight. (1700/1600) "Zombyra! Lead the way and trash her Legacy Adventurer! Grepher rid the field of her last defense!"

The Shadowchaser watched as her trap monster and set card were literally torn in half by the two monster's sword swings, pelting her with dust while Kaiba sneered. "Now you have no defenses left!"

"Actually, I do!" Kenshin held up the set monster that had just been destroyed. "That was Adventurer Recruiter and when he bites the big one, I can summon out any Adventurer monster from my deck!"

"Any monster at all?" Kaiba looked surprised at the statement, his eyes flicking briefly to Zombyra. "You can't have anything stronger than him...!"

"You're right, I don't. Especially since there are no Adventurer monsters whose level exceeds four. But we have to start somewhere!" She flicked the card her deck spat out into the air, the piece of cardboard spinning about until it morphed into a towering knight with a great claymore strapped to his back. "Byryne the Greatsword is summoned in attack mode!" (2000/1400)

"Two thousand attack..." Kaiba's surprise faded back into his confident superiority. "I might be worried if I had Zombyra's base form in play, but he only surpasses Grepher at the moment." A card flashed into existence behind his two monsters. "I set one card face-down and end my turn."

Kenshin drew and nodded to herself at what she saw. "Here goes- I activate the magic card Single Character Challenge! This card only works if I have a single Adventurer in play!" A silver glow suffused Byryne and he drew his weapon, holding it both hands. "Battle! Destroy Grepher! _Greatsword Blow!" _

The Adventurer charged, a single overhead blow of his weapon cleaving both Grepher and his sword in two. The two halves fell apart before they shattered. "And now the effect of Single Character Challenge kicks in! Since my monster destroyed one of yours in battle, I draw one card! Since it dealt you life point damage, his attack increases by the amount of damage he inflicted!" She plucked a card free from her deck and the warrior surged with energy as his power rose. (2000-2500) (KLP: 4100)

"One lucky hit isn't enough! I reveal the trap card- The Chosen Path!" The card's picture was split, showing Grepher and three other figures on each side walking down the light or the dark path from the 'The Paths of Destiny' card. "I can only activate this card during a turn when one of two unique monsters is destroyed! By removing a corresponding monster from my graveyard from play-" He held up Mazera Deville. "-I can summon forth one of Grepher's evolved forms!"

The burly warrior reappeared on his field and then darkness pooled out from the ruined city to swallow him up. "Grepher! I have selected your path of destiny! Embrace the powers of hell!"

Shadows bulged and twisted into a far more massive shape before being physically ripped apart by the creature they were meant to contain. It was monstrous gray and black dragon, its scales more like heavy plate armor and lethal spikes everywhere. Both sets of its wings were made out of shadow energy rather than anything material and the same energy dripped from its mouth, acidic enough to eat away at the stone below. "Hell Dragon Grepher!" (2500/2500)

"Holy Monkeyducks!" Kenshin's eyes bugged out at the sight of the dragon, which was nearly size of a bus. "It looks like it wants to eat me!"

"Who's to say it doesn't?" Kaiba smiled, the light from his field spell once again give him a demonic look. "You going to do anything else for your turn or can I get along with destroying you?"

The Shadowchaser looked at the dragon and gulped slightly, but she grit her teeth all the same. "Heck yeah, I'm gonna do something else!" She flipped around the card she just drew. "I activate the continuous spell card- Rescue The Romance!"

The card appeared in front of her, the picture showing a person in Varenstale storming into a dungeon cell where Leopoli was chained to the wall. "Here's how this card works! First, I select any monster in my deck and then banish it. Then, I select an Adventurer monster I control, like my Byryne."

"I don't see what you're trying-" Kaiba was cut off as suddenly his Zombyra the Devil began to chuckle darkly, folding his arms over his chest. Byryne glared at him angrily, gripping his weapon tightly. "What the hell are they doing!?"

"My spell card forces me to select a monster on your field who's level is higher than an Adventurer's and then an Adventurer I control Now, your monster has kidnapped my monster's love interest and he's not happy about it all!" The Warrior leveled his sword to point at Zombyra, warning him he was gunning for the devilish hero. "Now if one defeats the other in combat, the winner's controller can summon the monster I removed from play! However, there's a catch for either of us! If Byryne saves his love interest, I get that monster and then I can draw until I hold four cards

"And if Zombyra smashes your pathetic monster into the dirt, which he will?" Zombyra nodded in agreement, his axe-tail glinting sharply.

"You get my monster and Byryne free of charge." Kenshin set herself determinedly. "It's your move."

Kaiba stared at her for a moment and then started laughing. "That was the worst possible move you could have made! You have nothing to protect your monster and mine are more than enough to crush him! But if you want to lose so easily, far be it from me to deny you!" He snapped a card free from his deck. "_Echo of Zera!"_

He watched as the power wave roared from Zombyra's sword, smashing into Byryne violently. "And now-"

"And now I'm still in this!" Kenshin grinned as her monster emerged from the explosion of power. Bruised and batter, but unharmed. (KNLP: 2800) "I can send Single Character Challenge to the graveyard to negate my monster's destruction!" (2500-2000)

"That's fine, because I" ll just destroy him with this attack instead! Go, Hell Dragon Grepher!" The dragon roared and growled, but didn't do anything further. "What are you sitting around for!? I said to attack!"

"Not gonna happen, salad-head." Kenshin rubbed a finger under her nose, smirking a bit. "Rescue the Romance, for as long as its in play, keeps us from battling with any other monsters except the selected ones!"

"Rrrrr...mock me all you like..." Kaiba looked almost furious. "I'll grind you into dust and scatter you to the wind!" A card appeared behind his monsters. "My turn is over!"

"And it's my draw!" Kenshin drew steadily. "You're taking yourself way too seriously again and I told you, if you're like that, you're always going to lose any game you play!" She pointed across the field. "Go, Byryne! Attack now! _Greatsword Blow!"_

"Zombyra counterattacks!" Kaiba laughed as the warrior charged across the field, his monster's tail cracking around to slice the Adventurer's head off from behind. "Now die and-"

"I activate Shrink! This halves your monster's attack points!" Byryne ducked the axe tail and with a deft twist of his sword, sent it flying off into the remains of the city. As Zombyra staggered, an upswing tore the fusion monster's arm free and then the downswing ripped through him from shoulder to hip.

"Zombyra...!" Kaiba stared in horror as the hero toppled backwards, his body shattering into pixels as it hit the ground. (KLP: 3750) "You...how dare you!?"

Kenshin ignored him as her Rescue the Romance card began to glow. "Now I get to summon the monster I banished and draw until I hold four cards!" Pulling the cards free, she snapped a card out of seemingly thin air and slapped it onto her disk. "This is it, my deck's key monster!"

There was a flash of light and then there was a figured on her field, their form hidden by their heavy white and gold robes that were dotted with question marks. "Adventurer- Player Character!" (1000/1000)

"Player Character?" Kaiba growled in surprise at the monster. "I don't care what weaklings you summon, you're going to pay for destroying Zombyra!"

"That's what you said the last time and I'm still here, aren't I?" Kenshin slid a pair of cards into her disk and they materialized at her feet. "And like I said then, put up or shut up! Turn end!"

"Put up or shut up?" Kaiba snapped his turn card free. "I'll show you! I activate Trade-In, discarding another level eight monster to draw two cards!" Adding them to his hand, he grabbed one of his previous cards. "Monster Reborn resurrects the monster I just discarded!"

A clawed hand burst from the cement as his feet and then with a metallic roar, pulled the rest of the body free. It was a towering reptilian humanoid with red skin and covered in spiked armor. It could have easily been a match for the Hell Dragon Grepher. "Gogiga Gagagigo in attack mode!" (2950/2800)

His eyes burned with anger. "With Pandemonium in play, Hell Dragon Grepher gains immunity to your targeting cards, so he's safe from any of your stupid tricks! Destroy Player Character! _Hell Fireball!" _The dragon opened its maw, black light visible therein as flames built it up to overflowing.

"Byryne can redirect any attacks or card effects to himself!" The warrior charged across the field, his sword at the ready. "And since you declared an attack with a monster, I can activate Ego Boost! It'll give Byryne one thousand extra attack for this battle phase!" (2000-3000)

"NO!" Kaiba yelled in frustration as the warrior jumped up, coming down on his dragon blade first. The weapon pierced through and shut the dragon's jaws, its body rippling and exploding with the contained fire before it blew apart into pixels. "Damn you! Why won't you just give up already!? I am superior!" (KLP: 3250)

"That's not what this duel is telling me!" Kenshin pointed at him. "You may have the brains and tactics, but you're taking this way too seriously and not having any fun! You're ruining yourself when you do that, because you're too concerned with winning to see what's in front of you!"

"Winning is the only thing that matters! However you do so, as long as you win, you have the power! It makes you the king!" He yelled back, angry in every fiber of his being. "I will always win! I have to! Because if I don't...if I don't..."

Kenshin stopped, staring as his anger suddenly left him, the boy dropping his gaze to his feet. "Hey...are you okay? What will happen if you don't win?"

"If I don't win...if I don't win...then...then he'll...he'll..." The boy's shoulders shook, almost as if he was about to cry. Then his head snapped up, eyes burning and body trembling with barely-contained fury. "I WILL WIN! I AM THE KING!"

"Fine! That's the way you want it, you'll have to beat me first!" Kenshin said determinedly, unfazed by his anger. "It's still your turn!"

"I activate the magic card The Warrior Returning Alive, letting me add Zombyra from my graveyard to my hand! But of course, I'll just summon him again!" The dark-armored hero flipped out onto his field again. "Then I'll activate Nightmare's Steel Cage, preventing either of us from attacking for two of your turns!"

Kenshin watched a giant black steel bars erupted from the ground around, linking together to form a powerful looking steel cage around her. "Now you're the one hiding behind a defense!"

"Be quiet! Just take the time I'm giving you and pray to whatever gods you believe in, because I'm going to obliterate you soon enough!" Kaiba snapped at her and slid a card into his disk, where it appeared face-down. "End!"

The Shadowchaser drew slowly. (_I don't have any cards that I can get around th_e _Cage with, not that I want to...)_ She flicked her eyes to the Player Character monster. (_I have that, but...my gut is saying to wait on its powers. …)_ "I set one monster in defense mode and switch my other two monsters to defense mode as well!" The Player Character settled into a cross-legged position, while Byryne knelt and held his sword in front of him defensively. "I end my turn."

Kaiba drew, an irritated look flashing across his face. "You're lucky, this isn't what I need to finish you off. But I will summon another Warrior of Zera to the field!" Another of the armored warriors appeared alongside Zombyra. "End of turn."

"Draw!" Kenshin pulled the card free and couldn't hide her grimace at what she saw. "I pass this turn." Around her, the cage crumbled apart as its effect ended.

"And it's back to me." Drawing, he sneered. "Still not what I was hoping for, but that's fine. I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy my own set card." A howling wind swept over the card and it blew into dust. "That was Dowsing Point, which lets me add any monster from my deck to my hand."

"Heh, that card was slid out of the bottom of your deck. You never would have drawn it. I-" Kenshin froze as Kaiba pulled out the selected card, feeling something pulse from the card like it was alive. "Applejacks...what the hell is wrong with that card's coding?!"

She took a step forwards, her eyes reflecting the fear she was feeling at the card's presence. "What is it!? What did you do? There's magic in that card!"

"Magic?" Kaiba laughed darkly at her fear. "Magic, power, I suppose it's all the same...but this card...this card is the epitome of power and with it, I'll burn you and all my enemies to ashes! I sacrifice my three monsters..." All three of his monsters vanished into a giant pillar of golden fire and energy. "To summon out the mightiest card in existence!"

The flames and energy began to condense in the air behind him, becoming a great sphere of raw power. "I'll incinerate you in the fires of the sun itself!"

TTTTTTT

"Sir! The computer system is going crazy!" Peterich bolted out of his seat, hammering away furiously at the keys as all over. All around them, the screens and consoles began to flicker and jump rapidly, several of them simply erupting into messes of lines and data that had no rhyme or reason. "I've never seen a program wreak this kind of havoc!"

"That's because it's not entirely a program." Pegasus's single eye was focused on the blazing miniature sun that was on the screen, his face a mask of focus. "The gods may not be as involved on the Earth as they once were, but that doesn't mean there are not vestiges of them remaining..."

"But its not the real card or even a copy of it!" Another Shadowjack protested, watching as one of the screens sparked and then fractured, sizzling and smoking.

"It may be that because of my transgressions in the past, the Egyptian gods watch more closely than others for those who would take their powers for their own. Or even that, with the lose of the original cards, that Ra is simply seeking another chance to gain a form in this world for whatever purpose." The creator of Duel Monsters grimaced slightly. "I only hope that cheerful young lady can defeat this enemy..."

"I'm not going to take the chance that she can't. I'll have the computer system completely destroyed before I let Kaiba and an Egyptian God free on the world." Jalal swept forwards and planted his finger on the mic button. "Kenshin! This is Jalal! I am officially ordering you to withdraw immediately!"

He paled slightly as the only response from the speakers was the crackle of flames and a screeching cry that everyone recognized as the mightiest of the God Card's.

"Sorry, boss." Peterich shook his head and slammed his palm on the console in frustration. "We're completely locked out this time. She's on her own."

"Damn!" Jalal glared at the image on the screen for a long moment. "This situation has gotten completely out of control..."

"Show some more faith in your Shadowchaser, Jalal." Everyone turned to see Tsukihime, still seated calmly and drinking her tea despite the chaos around her. "Isn't it for situations like this that are precisely the reason we exist?"

Before anyone could respond, she nodded back towards the screen. "Look at her. Do you think she's going to let him win?"

TTTTTTT

Kaiba laughed, spreading his hands wide as the fire peeled away to reveal the glittering golden ball that was his monster. A second later, light spilled from the ball's cracks as it began to unfold to unveil the titan who's name alone was legend. "I hope you've enjoyed having fun, girl, because now you face down the mightiest weapon in existence! The Winged Dragon of Ra!" (6650/4800)

Fire bathed his field, swallowing it up to the point only the area around him was safe from it. The purely golden light made the psychotic grin on his face absolutely nightmarish. "Do you have any last words before I send you into the depths of oblivion?"

"...AWESOME!"

He stared at her, smile dropping away like someone had hosed it off. "...what?"

"I get to fight Ra! This is freaking awesome!" Kenshin pumped a fist in the air, jumping slightly. "I mean, I am like totally scared of the thing and how it feels like a really weird piece of coding, but still! I'm getting to fight against a God Card! This is every duelist's big dream! And I get to! Oooohhhhh, everyone's gonna be so jealous!"

"You...what..." Kaiba's eyebrow twitched spasmodically, his face registering total lack of comprehension at her reaction.

TTTTTTT

Everyone in the server room save Tsukihime either gained a giant sweat drop or face-faulted at the digital Shadowchaser's actions.

Jalal just stared blankly. "That's...that's..." He buried his face in his palm. "I don't know if she's just brave or crazy."

Pegasus, for his part, was chuckling merrily. "What a _marvelous_ girl, simply marvelous! Brave in the face of impossible odds, a true love of the game at her heart!" He clapped his hands a few times. "Funny Bunny would be proud, my dear."

Tsukihime was smiling around her tea, watching as Kenshin babbled on about psyched she was to fight Ra, even doing a little dance. "Duels are never tense when she's around, I've found...certainly helps in this case. No one is really panicking about the God card stomping around the computer network, are they?"

"Perhaps so." Jalal allowed. "But it doesn't change the fact that she still needs to a way to defeat it."

"If she makes it to the next turn." Peterich pointed at the screen, where the flames on Kaiba's field were gathering up around Ra. "Without becoming a barbecue..."

TTTTTTT

Kenshin stopped in mid-dance as Ra screeched at her, the surprised fear on her face a clear indicator that she was suddenly reminded that it was _Ra_ she was facing down. "Uh-oh..."

"You just piss me off!" Kaiba lifted his hand, the flames mimicking the action and shooting upwards to wrap around Ra's golden body and transforming into a living bird of flame. "I'll see you burn! I pay one thousand life points to activate one of Ra's greatest abilities! _Dance of the Phoenix!_"(KLP: 2250)

The Egyptian God Phoenix crashed into Kenshin's field violently, geysers of flame erupting skywards as the ground beneath her feet shuddered. Her and her monsters' screams were lost over the roar of the flames. They didn't even have time become pixels, the only sign of their passing being the thin wisps of ash remained floating about the air as the flames receded.

The Shadowchaser was smoking heavily, staggering a bit as she hugged one of her arms. Her skin was reddened and most surprisingly, a bit of blood trickled down one side of her face. "That...that wasn't fun..."

"About time you figured that out!" Kaiba sneered viciously as Ra reformed into the golden behemoth behind him. Energy built up in the crescent on its back and flicked out between its beak. "Too bad it's too little, too late! Now you lose and I win! _God Blaze Cannon!_"

The light from the attack was blinding, swallowing up Kenshin and her field instantly even as it sailed off the edge of the tower and vaporized a large patch of the clouds in the distance. Off in the horizon, the Virtual World seemed to shuddered and invert for a brief moment, the images fading to reveal twisted lines of ones and zeroes before snapping back to normal.

Kaiba watched the flames from the attack slowly get swept away, revealing nothing but blackened and scorched earth where Kenshin had been. "That was eminently satisfying...I'd acknowledge you as good duelist...if there was anything left to acknowledge!"

He laughed, only to pause when he noticed a face-up card was still on Kenshin's field. "Nutrient Z, huh? Such a shame that her luck didn't hold on long enough to..." His eyes widened and he trailed off as he saw a life point counter flash above where she had been standing. (KNLP: 150) "Impossible!"

"That was close!" Kenshin's head suddenly poked out of nowhere just above the ground, a relieved expression on her face. "I was nearly pixelated with that one!"

Kaiba's only response was a spluttering, inarticulate attempted scream that sounded rather like a broken-down car vainly trying to turn over.

The Shadowchaser hopped out of where she was, dusting ash off of her jeans jacket. "Thank god I had my trap card- you would have won!" Running a hand through her hair to rid it of ash as well, she continued. "So is it my turn?"

"...yes." Kaiba spat the word with vehemence, a strangely calm anger falling across his features. Like the rage he was feeling had simply become his normal state of mind rather than an outburst. A card flashed into existence in front of him. "Turn end."

"Draw!" Kenshin drew and then glanced up at Ra. The golden behemoth was simply standing there after its hellish actions the last turn, silent and unmoving. It was altogether impressive and unnerving, as if the proxy of the god simply deign anything but the commands of its master to be worthy of its notice.

Her eyes seemed to zone out for a brief second as she mentally poured through all the information on Ra. (_Point-to-Point Transfer, Instant Attack, Dance of the Phoenix, immunity to nearly every effect in existence, including those of other God Card__s__. Once it is on the field, its biggest weakness is that it can be destroyed in battle.) _

She smiled excitedly. (_Taking it down that way- that'll be a blast!)_

"From my hand, I activate magic card Graceful Charity! So now I draw three cards and discard two!" Suiting action to the words, she plucked the three cards free and barely glanced at them before dropping two of them into her graveyard. "And one of the cards I discarded was Elegant Light LV4, so now I can special summon a monster that's level four or lower from my deck!"

A card came flying out of the dwindling stack and flew in front of her, morphing into a rugged-looking man in plate armor and wielding a longsword in both hands. "Adventurer Warrior- Pyerious the Longsowrd! (1800/1600)

"Next up, Monster Reborn! Now for the star to take center stage!" A flash of white light surrounded her. When it faded, she was wearing the robes of the Player Character monster, though obviously with the hood down. Her duel disk was still on her wrist and staff slung across her back. Grinning at her outfit, she skipped and did a little dance. "Oh, I look _fabulous!"_

"You made yourself monster? You must want to lose- Ra can destroy that monster with ease and when it does, you'll go, too." Kaiba sneered.

"Not if I take out Ra first! I told you- this monster was my deck's primary weapon and now I'm going to show it! Go!" Kenshin began to glow violet and she ran over, glomping her monster around the waist. The glow brightened and then swallowed them both up. "Contact Fusion!"

"Contact Fusion!? You have that power!?" Kaiba shielded his face from the glow briefly. "It doesn't matter! Ra and I will crush you!"

"You're starting to tick me off with that kind of talk..." Kenshin's voice emerged from the glow, rough and sounding a step away from 'extremely pissed off.' "And you won't like me when I'm angry."

"Just how are you supposed to be...intimidating..." Kaiba gulped as the energy around Kenshin faded away, revealing the youth now standing, neck-to-toe in fully plate armor. It was jet black with blood-red trim and spiked to a ferocious degree. And in one hand, she was wielding a giant hammer that was a good foot taller than she was and its head was bigger than hers.

"Adventurer Warrior- Berserker." (3000/0) The ground caved slightly as Kenshin let the hammer drop idly, her face a mask of irritation and frustration. "And there's just something about you that pisses me off."

She plugged a card into her disk. "I equip myself with Megamorph." Red energy erupted around her sharply as her attack points skyrocketed. (3000-6000) "TIME TO BRING THE PAIN!"

Wrenching her hammer free of the ground, she gripped it in both hands and charged with an enraged bellow, each step shaking the ground despite the fact her small frame should have been unable to do so in the slightest.

"You're-" Kaiba stopped himself as he watched her attack score surge again. (6000-8100) "You gained the difference in our life point as attack points!" Then he ducked as she jumped up right in front of him, soaring straight for his god. "You won't beat Ra like that! I activate the Point-To-Point Transfer Ability!"

Energy poured off him and flowed into the god, who screeched as flames began to gather in its open beak. (6650-8800) (KLP: 100) "And now that the difference in our life points has changed, that means you lose your little power boost!"

Kenshin's red aura suddenly popped like a soap bubble and she actually skidded to a stop in the air as Ra's attack began to grow in size. "Tch...!" Then the attack fired, but she snapped her fingers. Instantly, she glowed and separated back into her Player Character form and Peyrious, the God Blaze Cannon sheering through the space where she had just been.

Both of them landed in skids from the attack's force, Kenshin shielding herself from the light. "Dammit...I was totally sure that would work! Oh well, at least I'm not irrationally pissed anymore..." She flipped around a card in her hand. "Contact Breaker lets me send a Contact Fusion back to my Fusion Deck to summon out its components, in case you were wondering. "

"I wasn't, thank you you very much, because even an idiot could have seen that!" Kaiba barked.

"Yeah, well, given how many times you've flipped out already, I just thought I'd keep you from blowing a blood vessel." Snickering at him, she plugged a card into her disk and it appeared in front of her. "My turn's over and on my next one, I'll be serving up barbecue chicken!"

"Your little trick failed, so why would your next turn be any different?" Kaiba drew with a laugh. "Now Ra, why don't you-"

"Reveal trap card! Waboku! All damage to me or my monsters is reduced to zero this turn!"

He froze, his drawn card still halfway to his hand. "You...fine, then! I'll incinerate you with the attack regardless of the damage or not! God Blaze Cannon!"

"Are you nuts!?" Kenshin stared as the god began to power its attack yet again. "Ra is already screwing with the coding of this world! Every second it exists here, this virtual reality is changed in some way! It's not happy that its under your control and now you're just having it attack pointlessly!? You're going to piss it off!"

"Who cares!? I'm a god here! I _created _this place and I can create a new one just as easily! Until you are beaten, there's no length I wouldn't go! I won't have any challenges to my might! I will reign supreme!" Kaiba thrust his fist forwards. "_DIE!"_

"No on your life!" Kenshin unslung her staff from her back, the disc tray popping open. She held out her hand and in a flash of light, a glowing CD appeared then. Sliding it home, she snapped the tray shut and slammed her hand down on a button. "Kenshin a-go-go, baby!"

A sphere of light erupted around her.

TTTTTTT

In utter darkness, Kenshin glowed white, her clothes vanishing as a giant tidal wave rose up behind her. It crashed down and splashed over her harmlessly to fade away. In its wake, Kenshin was now wearing black and blue, high-collared halter, two pink belts intersecting over her chest and black shorts. White bell-sleeves shifted as she flexed a tan, fingerless glove. Black stockings reached halfway up her thighs, her feet hidden by armored, silver boots with a sharp hook on outer side. Two blue strips of cloth draped over her hips, while smaller white ones fit better around her waist.

Partial, segmented armor appeared on her arms and then flashed as she held out her hand, the light gathering in her palm. "Stormfell!"

It became a deep blue weapon, shaft wider at the base and tip then in the middle. The hilt was silver and resembled hook-like wings curving towards the weapon. At the end of it was a shallow-V shape, with a series of four tongs around along the V.

Kenshin slashed the weapon through the air, water and magic dancing around her. "Keyblade Master Aqua, Dancing Waters Forming Bonds!"

TTTTTTT

Kaiba laughed as the God Blaze Cannon smashed into where Kenshin was standing, morphing into a pillar of flames that punched skywards. "Burn to ash, you annoying girl!"

"_Reflect!" _

A sheen of glass was visible within the flames and then Kaiba was forced to shield his face as the blaze was forcibly scattered in all directions. "What now!?"

"You can't keep a good gamer down like that!" Kenshin grinned and waggled a finger at him, before striking a pose with her Keyblade.

"_God Blaze Cannon!_"

"Knock it off!" Kenshin braced her weapon in front of her. "_Reflect!_" As before, the giant blast of flame smashed into her magical shield and simply scattered apart in all directions harmlessly.

Kaiba snarled and glanced up at his jet-black version of Ra. "What is wrong with you, you lousy program!? You are the strongest card in existence, yet you can't even rid me of insignificant pest!"

"Uhhh..." Kenshin gulped as she saw Ra crane its head to look down at the shouting youth, its red eyes glowing ominously. "Maybe you shouldn't yell at the strongest of all cards like that..."

"You be quiet!" Kaiba snapped at her. "To think that a little glitch like yourself is causing me such problems and yet this hunk of piecemeal coding can't even manage to just eradicate you! It's a freaking god and all you are is a pest! You should have been dead ten times over now, but you just keep on avoiding it, like the rules to don't apply to you! Well, this is _my _world and _my _rules and when I tell a god to kill you, it better damn well do so!"

Ra stared down at the boy, flames beginning to flicker around its beak.

"_I _am the ruler here and I will not be mocked any longer! If Ra can't rid you of me, I'll delete and try it with another god! Maybe you'd like to be crushed under Obelisk's fist or cut in two so each of Slifer's mouths can have a piece of you! Maybe-" Kaiba froze as he realized that there was an increasing amount of light over his person. He shuddered and craned his head over his shoulder to see the rather large fireball Ra was gathering. "Maybe...maybe...maybe..."

"_Aerial Raid!_" Kenshin's keyblade came flying up, ricocheting off of Ra's head with enough force that the God Blaze Cannon went wide. The whole Virtual World shuddered as the flames gouged a massive trench along the ground before sailing off into the horizon again. The sky rippled, becoming thousands of jet-black ones and zeros. They began to gather together, forming dark clouds that rippled and surged fire and lightning.

Kaiba screamed and barely managed to leap aside as Ra's massive foot came crashing down right where he had been. Desperate scrabbling helped him avoid a second stomp and he stared up in horror at the behemoth looming over him. "No! No! This isn't right! You're supposed obey me! I created you! You listen to me!"

Ra screeched in response, nearly drowning out his cry of fear and began to flames in the arch above its neck. The storm clouds above pulsed and throbbed in response, great bolts of lightning lancing down and smashing craters all around.

"Pick on someone your own power level, chicken-boy!" Kenshin came hurtling down from out of nowhere, sparks flying and Ra roaring as she landed a powerful strike on the back of its head. Landing on the god's shoulder, she charged again and landed a powerful two-handed spinning strike on Ra's face with such force that the god screeched in and staggered.

Then flames erupted around its body, blasting Kenshin away and it rose into air with a furious roar. The storm's intensity seemed to increase in response, striking the God Phoenix with lightning and fire. Fire and air warped as it roared again, light gathering in its mouth for another attack.

Kenshin flipped herself right in mid-air, snapping her Keyblade around to point at it. Little snowflakes gathered around the tip as a sphere of blue energy appeared there. It rapidly grew to the size of a basketball and the doubled in size suddenly. _"Blizzaga!" _

The sphere shot across the distance to Ra, smashing into the left wing and layering it with a massive sheet of ice. More spheres followed, colliding with and freezing the titanic monster solid. Kenshin allowed herself a grin that quickly faded as Ra's eyes flashed and the ice exploded off it as its attack erupted straight for her. "SNAGGLEFRAZZ! _REFLECT!" _

The shimmering barrier appeared around her not a second too soon. Even with its magic protecting her, she crossed her hands in front of her face to shield it from the heat and light. The sphere was shaking like a snowglobe and then it cracked sharply, drawing a scream from her as her world became heat and flames.

Kaiba watched, his eyes widening as the attack ended and Kenshin came careening out of it, trailing smoke and bits of her Reflect barrier. Ra's cry of anger snapped his head back around to the behemoth and he scrambled backwards as fast he could, shaking his head desperately. The sky boomed with thunder and that seemed to be the trigger as another attack came sweeping across the ground for him.

"For someone so smart, why are you stupid enough to just sit there!?" Kenshin drove her Keyblade point-first into the ground in front of them as she about tackled the boy. _"Aeroaga!" _

Kaiba could only stare as a torrent of wind erupted around them, Ra's attack morphing it into a pillar of wicked flames. But the magic held, preventing the fire from doing anything but look intimidating. "I...how...why..."

"No time!" Kenshin grabbed him by the shoulders and looked him in the eye. "You need to delete that thing!"

"What? I can't!" He protested. "It wouldn't listen to me earlier, why would it do it now?"

"You _created _this world, didn't you? You can get rid of it!"

"Didn't you hear me? I _can't!_" With a brief burst of anger, he knocked her arms off him and stamped on the ground, clutching his head. "I can't do it, okay!? I'm a failure! I'm...I'm...just...just..."

"You're a kid and Ra is becoming your boogeyman, I know!" Kenshin knelt so they were eye-level and grabbed his upper arms, her blue eyes boring into his. "I know you're afraid, but you said it yourself! This is _your_ world! Nothing can hurt you here if don't allow it! I believe that you can make it go away!"

"I-I need a plan, I-"

"Don't thinkabout it, _believe!" _

Kaiba stared and then closed his eyes, screwing up his face and clenching his fists. For a moment, there was only the roar of the Ra's flames in his ears...

And then merciful silence. For one moment, then a second and a third and on and on. He froze, not daring to breath and trying to ignore the trembling in his knees and the fear icing his insides.

"BOO!"

"YAAAAAAH!" The prodigy screamed and flailed, his arms pinwheeling desperately before he landed on his butt. He winced and then scowled up at Kenshin, who was giggling madly. "You moron! What did you do that for!?"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I just couldn't resist!" The Shadowchaser glowed briefly as her transformation broke down and reverted her to her normal appearance. Still grinning, she reached out and grabbed Kaiba's hand, helping him to his feet. "Good job, though. I knew you could do it!"

He glanced about and saw that she was right. No black sky of computer code, no flaming god phoenix ready to strike him down. Even the damage from the duel and Ra had been completely repaired.

"So." She clasped her arms behind her back, rocking on her heels lightly. "Let's get back to our duel, shall we?"

"No. It's a stupid waste of time." Kaiba pulled off his duel disk and tossed it aside, watching it bounce and spin to a stop. That completed, he sat down and drew his knees up to his chest, arms folded over them in a pout. "It's a stupid game, anyway."

After a moment, he cast an eye to Kenshin. "And you're stupid, too. A genius like me doesn't have to do anything with you."

"Sounds like to me that you're quitting because you were losing." She said with a hint of smugness.

His hair danced as he swung his head around angrily to glare at her. "I wasn't losing, I was letting you win! I could have beaten you anytime I wanted to!" Then paused, as if realizing something and then returned to his original position to stare out at the digital sea with a sigh.

Kenshin frowned a for a moment and then plopped herself down next to him, legs crossed and leaning back on her hands. "What is it with you and this thing about winning and proving you're superior?"

"I don't have to tell you anything. My concerns have no bearing on your life."

"You don't. And they don't." She conceded. "But I'll listen, anyways."

"..."

"Up to you."

"...my father told me that a real man always wins. And I'm smarter than everyone, so I have to win. If I don't, he's not going to be happy. I'm his son. I'm supposed to be a man, too." Kaiba said after a long moment.

"He doesn't sound like a very good dad."

"That's what mom told me, but she has to be wrong. She just didn't care winning enough and let people use her." He straightened a bit. "But if I keep winning and become the king at something, dad will see that I understand! He'll know I'm his son! He'll come back!"

Kenshin tilted her head to look at him. "Is that why you're trying to take over the Industrial Illusions computers? To get your dad to notice you?"

"Yeah! I don't know exactly how I got in here...or why or whatever, but this place is important! I heard them talking about it, the whole word is affected by this computer system!" He stood up determinedly. "I created a world in here, all this! And that's just the beginning! Once I get control of this computer, there's no way my dad won't see I'm a winner! And he'll come find me!"

"...heh. You're certainly determined." Kenshin stood up also, making sure to bring her staff up with her. "You know, they sent me in here for a reason, Kaiba."

"Huh? What's that?" His childish moment had passed, replaced by his usual derision. "You sent in to here just to cause me problems or get your butt handed to you?"

"They sent me in here to help you, idiot." She stuck her tongue out at him for a brief moment and then continued. "And you seemed like fun, so I wanted to play with you, too."

"Oh..." He considered this for a moment and then looked up at her. "What are you supposed to help me with?"

"We found your dad." She gave a big smile at his shocked expression. With her staff, she pointed over his shoulder. "He's waiting for you through there."

Kaiba turned to see a doorway filled with white a few yards behind him. "How did-that wasn't there before!"

"Son? Son, is that you?" An outline appeared in the doorway, a hand reaching out. "I've come home."

"Dad!" Kaiba made to run for the doorway and then skidded, whirling back to Kenshin with a sharp look on his face. "Why didn't you do all of this earlier!?"

"I told you, you looked like you need to chill out and have some fun." Kenshin sweatdropped and rubbed the back of her head. "Even if things did get a little out of hand at the end there..."

"Yeah..." Kaiba looked away with a mix of irritation and a pout, folding his arms. "You kind of messed things up there...but you were going to lose anyway, so it doesn't matter. Be glad I gave you a draw!"

Kenshin just laughed. "Alright, you have me there." She gave a small 'eep' as the boy hugged her tight around the waist. "What's this now?"

He pulled away, giving her a smirk. "Thank you. For playing a good game with me and helping me find me dad. I normally don't thank my lessers, but you guys can do something right once in a while."

"Yes, we sure can." Kenshin tousled his hair and then made a shooing gesture. "Go on, already! Your dad's waiting!"

Nodding, Kaiba turned and ran for the door, a big grin spreading onto his face as he saw the image of his father standing there, reaching for him. "Dad! Dad! I've got so much to tell you! I knew you'd get my message!"

"You couldn't have made it any clearer, son!" His father laughed as the boy nearly tackled him around the waist and swept him up in a hug. "You've made me so proud."

"Oh dad..." Kaiba just hugged him tightly and tried not to cry.

"HEY!"

They lifted their heads to see Kenshin waving at them wildly, one hand cupping her mouth. "Kaiba! I meant what I said about you being a really great duelist! I'd love to play you again some time! If you reincarnate, come look me up so we can have a blast! Only without any crazy god cards, okay!?"

"Huh? Reincarnate?" Kaiba scowled and opened his mouth to tell her she was being stupid again, when she simply warped out of sight. "Dad? What was she talking about?"

"Nothing you need to worry about, son." His father took his hand. "Now let's go-we've got a lot of catching up to do."

"Uh-huh!" Kaiba smiled and squeezing his father's hand, walked into the light...

TTTTTT

"Are we getting anything, anything at all?" Jalal demanded.

"Sorry, boss, but its not easy trying to get a system run by a delinquent genius computer program to be have." Petrich huffed and slapped his console in frustration.

"Ra went berserk and then we lost our connection completely. I don't care if it's a program, I'm not letting one of my men face down a deity alone. I want you to find me a pod and hook...me...up...so...I...can..." Jalal trailed off as suddenly, every non-functioning screen in the room cleared up, filling with data and screenshots and information.

"We're...back online." Peterich studied his screen for a long second. "The I2 server is functioning within normal parameters. There's no trace of Kaiba or the Virtual World at all. She...she...did it!"

"Thank you, Jali-boy." Pegasus grabbed Jalal's hand and shook it vigorously as a cheer went up from the Shadowjacks across the room. "You've saved my precious game. I don't know how I could ever begin to thank you."

"Actually, Mister Pegasus, I may have an idea..." Jalal said after a long moment. It's something I thought long and hard about. I'd like for you to make me a special card."

"Say no more. I'll do the artwork myself!" Pegasus clapped his hands together with a smile. "What shall it be?"

"Well, I'd like for it to be one of those new Synchro monsters and it's going to be a tribute to my father. Do you think that-" Jalal suddenly found himself eating floor as a nearby console flashed and something plowed into him roughly.

"Whoops! Sorry, boss!" Kenshin rolled off him and jumped to her free, grinning like a loon. "Am I awesome or what? Not only did I get myself a kickass set of new cards and deleted an entire virtual world program but I got to fight against the Winged Dragon of Ra _and_ everyone involved got a happy ending!"

She did a little jig, treating her staff like it was a cane and she was waving an imaginary hat. "C'mon, don't be shy with the praise, folks! I've earned it and no matter how outlandish, it's all true!"

Tsukihime just sighed and took a drink of tea as around the room, red-faced individuals discreetly glanced away or buried themselves in their screens while Pegasus was suddenly very interested in helping Jalal up off the floor.

"KENSHIN! _CLOTHES!" _

TTTTTTT

"Wow. You got Pegasus himself to do the art? That's very impressive."

"Well, he was very thankful for our help. His generosity would have been more, but I didn't want to impose."

"Or have people cry foul on the Fair Fight Clause when you were getting all this nifty new cards straight from the source."

"That, too."

"I've had a lot of experience with sentient programs, Jalal, especially since my best friend is one. Kenshin really didn't send Kaiba to heaven or whatever with his father, did she?"

"No, no. She's a technomage, not a cleric of anything. According to her, that bit of Kaiba was simply a very advanced program. It was comprised of Kaiba's strategic mind, ruthlessness and some portions of what Kenshin told me were 'bits of his childhood that he locked away'. It could have never changed or gotten beyond wanting to find his father. Even if we had literally found the man, the Kaiba program would never have recognized him."

"And the happy ending she gave him...?"

"She explained it as 'the right thing to do.' "

"She's got a good heart, then."

"One of the best." Jalal dusted himself off and stood up from the piece of rubble where he and Adrian had seated themselves so he could finish the story. "Shall we go, then?"

Adrian stood up as well, glancing around at the ruins of what had been Hateglow's base. The doctor himself had already been teleported to prison via a capture jewel. "Yeah, sure. I think we've destroyed everything worth destroying that he owned."

"Do you fancy sharp fin soup for dinner?"

"Ugh, don't even joke about that, Jalal. "The Librarian fell into step beside his friend as they began to meander out from the rubble. "So Noah Kaiba invaded and took over I2, only to be stopped by the living spirit of a gaming console. It sounds like like a piece of fanfiction."

"Oh, that wasn't a Noah program Kenshin fought."

"Then whose was it?"

"Gozaburo's."

TTTTTTT

_A/N:__ Quite the twist, right? I hope you all enjoyed it immensely._

_Normally, I would put a list of original cards after this point, but I'm going to skip it this time. One reason is that Kaiba's Zombyra cards were literally made up as I wrote the chapter and thus, not all of them have fully-fleshed out effects. Kenshin's Adventurers are mostly complete, but I feel that a few of them edited effects or other changes- so there's no point in listing them here if the next time they show up, I have to post updated versions. _

_If anyone is interested in using either set, PM me and we'll work something out. _

Secret Life of Characters #3

Kenshin

"_Kenshin a-go-go, baby!...hehehe, catchphrases are AWESOME!" _

_History: _As stated in the story, Kenshin is the living spirit of an original Nintendo Entertainment System. Inaminate objects gaining sentience and a spirit isn't unheard of, even in the world of Shadowkind. The idea of such stems from Japanese folklore, in particular the unique kind of Yokai known as a 'Tsukumogami'. After one hundred years of use, an object will gain life. However, it is important to point out that is clearly stated that _no_ electrical object can become a Tsukumogami. Thus, any attempt to classify Kenshin as anything other than a 'Spirit' is done in vain.

"_Hey, what do you mean 'in vain'? You can classify me as 'totally badass and amazing!', thank you very much!"_

Hey! What the heck? How did you get here? This isn't-

_'Computers and stuff are my specialty! Like I wouldn't make sure you wouldn't screw this up!_

This is the 'Secret Life of Characters'! How do you even know about this?

"_Kenshin __The Magnificent knows all via the might of Google! Anyway, I'll take it from here._

_I joined the Shadowchasers shortly after that whole incident with Darkness and stuff. Jalal was quick to give me a job. Practically falling over himself once he saw how talented I was! Though it also may have something to do with literally just wandering onto his personal computer screen and building a fort out of his desktop icons...ehehehehehe...what can I say? I was on a Minecraft binge and got carried away..._

_Not only do I have a very natural and very killer affinity with computers and other digital technology, able to make them dance to my tune given enough time, my powers extend to the real world, too! I'm a member of a kickass school of magic known as Technomagic and while I really can't do the whole a lot of the traditional things, I can totally transform! Grab game disk or cartridge, plug it into my staff and hit 'Start' and bam! I've got the powers and abilities of the gaming industries most awesome characters! __Or turn my weapon into some of the most kickass weapons fiction has ever devised!_

_'Course, it only lasts for a minute or so, but pssh, so what? For a hero of my caliber, __that's more than enough time to save the day! _

_And just in case, I've got my own team of sidekicks! Of course, if you ask them, they'll all say that I'm just being silly, but we all know that they're secretly thrilled to be at my side when I do some epic saving of the day! _

_To be honest, I'm happy to be around them, too. The Backwater team is my family and they're the best siblings anyone could ask for. I love them more than I could love any game! (And considering what a godlike gamer I am, that's saying a lot!) Even if Tsukihime and the others keep yelling at me to wear clothes all the time...bah! _

Deck: _The Adventurers are a brainchild of the man himself, Pegasus! (God rest his soul-he's up in that big Duelist Kingdom in the sky) _

_Designed around standard RPG ideas and Tropes, (TVTropes is an amazing site, but be careful- it'll steal your soul!) the Adventurers are unique among Duel Monsters archetypes. Not only for being totally meta that you are controlling a party of adventurer stereotypes and the Player Character monster tends to look like the duelist using it. (Mine, especially! Just a little trick...), but because none of the monsters are over level four. It also focuses especially on the Contact Fusion Mechanic, because who needs a Polymerization? This lets me yank campaign up a notch by getting some Prestige Class action going! _

_Of course, a lot of the card effects are a bit of a gamble, with all the dice rolls and coin flips. But that's how an RPG works- things aren't always certain! Using this deck makes the duel an RPG! It's Gam__e__-ception!_

Origins: _Ummm..._

_Uhhh..._

_Errrr..._

_Bye now! _

...uh-huh. Right, anyway. Kenshin is indeed inspired by Tsukumogami, though most of her genesis came with the fact that I wanted a technomage on the team and wanted to do something unusual with them. I chose the idea of a spirit of an original NES because, well, I still have mine. And it still works. I'm someone who enjoys playing older games (mostly because I can't afford the latest generation of console and its games ever) and I have many, many happy memories of playing games like the original _Final Fantasy_, _A Boy And His Blob_ and quite a few others. And given how game-centric the world of Yu-gi-oh is, not to how advanced technology is in it, who better to take advantage of it than a living game console?


	6. The Librarian's Tale PT2

Shadowchasers: Twice-Told Tales  
By 7th Library

Side Story: The Librarian's Tale PT2

A/N_: Welcome back!_

_TTTTTTT_

_The ship looked like one good touch would cause it to cave into splinters. A broken mast leaning dangerously, much of the upper decks seemed to have been literally torn off and nearly a dozen holes littered the ship's sides. A few were only just so above the waterline and it wasn't too hard to imagine that a single strong wave could swamp the vessel. How it was moving with its torn and tattered sails was nothing short of impressive. _

_And what was truly impressive was the coils of the dead sea dragon that was linked to the ship by heavy chains glittering blue and gold scales marred only by a few gaping wounds or streaks of blood. It was easily twice times as long as the ship itself and nearly as thick. To survive an encounter with such a creature was nearly a legend unto itself. _

_To slay one and bring it home as a prize, however, was something else entirely. _

"_What on earth possessed you to attempt something like this?" The Queen demanded as she stepped farther along the dock to get a better look at the dead monster._

"_The Royal Guard needs better armor. Dragonscale is required for that. And the fangs will allow for better quality weapons to be forged, as well." He replied, peering into the dragon's head that been dragged up onto the pier and running his hands over the massive fangs therein. "The weapons the smiths provide me keep breaking." _

"_I doubt that even a magical weapon would be able to keep up with your strength and ferocity, my shadow." Indeed, she could see at least a half-dozen various broken swords and battle-axes lodged in the dragon's body so deeply she doubted even she had the strength to pull them free. "We will have to work on procuring a weapon more suited to you." _

"_Indeed. And armor, as well. That, too, does not serve me well at the moment. Perhaps black dragonscale...if it had not be for one of those Shadow Sirens, I would have lost a-" He was cut off as a suddenly a small explosion came from the deck of the ship, rocking it sharply. _

"_What was that?" The Queen demanded as another one followed shortly and she had to take a step back to avoid the water the ship's movements cause to splash upon the dock. _

"_The Admiral who sailed with me to the sea dragon territory. He is...rather excitable." _

"_You don't say..." She paused, head tilted as if she was listening to something only she could hear. "I will return shortly-something requires my attentions." With a burst of shadow, she was gone."_

_He watched her leave, then returned his attention to the ship as strange little being came bounding down the gangplank. "Your excitement seems to be causing almost as much damage to your ship as the dragon did, Admiral Bobbery."_

"_Aye, but I can hardly contain myself, good sir!" Bobbery bounced from to foot, the ship's wheel on his back spinning eagerly. "That was a quest for the history books! Braving the territory of a sea dragon, the wrath of ocean herself! A battle against impossible odds! It was beautiful, magnificent even! _You_ were magnificent, brilliant! _I _was brilliant!" He laughed happily. "Let those poor sea dogs down at the pub cry into their drinks over missing this one!" _

"_You were indeed of incredible help, Admiral. Not many would willingly engage a sea dragon at point-blank range. I commend your bravery." He cast eye towards the damaged ship. "And your sacrifice."_

"_Aye." The little sea captain sobered up some, turning to face his battered vessel. "The ole' girl has probably seen her last voyage. The repairs would be more than I could afford and more than she's worth." Then his excited mood returned. "But she made it home to tell of her greatest adventure and a finer crew was never carried upon her decks!" _

_He nudged the shadow's leg. "You may be a landlubber, but you've picked up sailing quicker than a fish takes to water! And I've never seen anyone fight like you do! It's almost as if you more of a dragon than that overgrown sea snake! Would like to come along on my next adventure, lad? You'd be a fine first mate and with your luck, each trip would be grander than the last!" _

"_Thank you for your kind offer, but I must decline. There are other duties I must attend to here on Arcadia and my purpose lies among them."_

"_Say no more-I recognize that look in your eye, lad! You've got a lady love, haven't you?" Bobbery laughed again before the shadow could respond. "Then be glad you've only got one, for some days I fear that Scarlette would chase the entire ocean away to get my attentions if she could!"_

_He chuckled. Once. "I shall keep that in mind." He reached into a pack on his waist and then produced a square slip of paper, handing it to the Admiral." This is yours, along with the amount we agreed upon." _

"_Eh?" Bobbery took the paper, staring at it curiously. Then his captain's hat nearly flew off his head and his mustache twitched sharply. "This is-"_

"_A Royal Writ. Take this to the harbormaster and he will move your ship to the top of the repair list. If it cannot be repaired, then you may have your pick of any ship under construction or moored in the harbor." _

_Bobbery stared at him in surprise. "How in all the seas did you get this, lad? The Queen is not exactly the most charitable when it comes to Writs and the like!"_

"_She is not. But to those who serve her well in their capacities are not forgotten and she never forgets a debt of any magnitude." He bowed to the Admiral. "And nor do I. You have my gratitude, Admiral Bobbery. I will be certain to call upon your services again should I have but the slightest need." _

"_If this how every adventure goes with you, good sir, then you won't need to ask at all. I'll be banging on your door!" He returned the bow and even tipped his hat. "Thank you! Now I must be off to tell Scarlette the good news!" _

_With that, Bobbery scurried down the dock as fast as his little legs could carry him, exploding now and again and laughing like a loon as he vanished out of sight._

_He had only finished inspecting and deciding that the dragon's largest fang would be appropriate for a sword when he felt the shadows ripple and turned to see the Queen had returned._

"_I found the most interesting commotion going on in my throne room." She said without preamble. "These three-" As she spoke, masses of smoky shadow billowed out from around her, resolving into the half-human shapes of the Shadow Sirens. "- were clamoring for an audience with me. When I arrived, they seemed to think I owed them some sort of reward because you are important to me and they saved your life."_

_A blonde eyebrow lifted regally. "Is this true?"_

"_No." As the two older Sirens opened their mouths to protest, he fixed them with a sharp look. Their jaws promptly clamped shut. "_They_ did not save my life."_

_He walked between them, to where the third, almost child-sized one was cowering behind her sisters. He pointed at her. "_She_ saved my life." _

"_Did she now?" The Queen looked down at the Siren almost curiously. "How commendable, child."_

"_I-I...I mean...he...dragon...fangs...chomp?" The child squeaked out nervously, her form fluctuating between dissolving and solidifying with anxiety. Her eyes darted from the Queen to her sisters and back again several times. _

"_It is alright." The softness in his voice drew her gaze to him as he knelt down to look her levelly in the eyes."You have done nothing wrong, so you don't need to be afraid. You saved my life and I am very thankful that you did so." _

"_Y-you're...welcome." She suddenly seemed to blush shyly. _

"_Have you a name?"_

"_V-vivian." The blush grew._

"_Vivian. For what you've done today, you've earned my respect, gratitude and friendship. Should you ever need council or aid, seek me out. And you are under my protection, as well. Any who declare yourself your enemy are mine as well." He stood and tousled her hair as she stared at him with wide eyes. "Now take your sisters and go play. You've done enough hard work for now."_

"_Ah..ah...y-yes!" Vivian squeaked again, suddenly crimson and vanished down the down in a swirl of shadow, her sisters racing after her._

"_You are generous." The Queen said as she stepped closer to him. _

"_I repay my debts and reward loyalty." He folded his arms. "If we are to rule by fear, then rule by fear of lose. Let them fear what will happen if you are not there to give them aid, to reward them and loyalty will follow."_

"_How...noble of you." She commented idly, returning to look at the dragon's maw. "Now, which of the fangs will make you blades that will at least more than a few swings with you?"_

"The two great ones, obviously and perhaps the ones in the back of the mouth..."

_TTTTTTT_

"I know you're eager to rush to your defeat, Armityle, but we are still in my kingdom. So all my edicts are still in effect. Including the one where we select a Deckmaster for duels inside my palace." The Queen said crisply, pulling her deck free of her disk and fanning the stack out before her. "So make your choice, gentlemen." (SQLP: 8000)

"_Deckmasters...what an interesting notion. It just adds more ways for me to defeat you, however." _Armityle chuckled and spread his arms wide. "_However, I choose not to select from my deck and instead, from my extra deck. I select myself as my own Deckmaster." (_AMLP: 8000)

"You know, people being their own Deckmaster seems to be the running thing whenever this system pops up." Adrian commented idly as he made his choice from amongst his rather thick-looking deck. "I may have to look into getting my own personal card, just to save myself some time." (ALP: 8000)

"If you can develop a card that can be powered by your obnoxiousness, I am all for it." The Queen said dryly and then flicked her chosen card into the air. It spun around rapidly, before morphing into a large, muscular man wearing spectacles and a lab coat. His laugh boomed as he crossed his broad arms over his chest. "Terror Villain- Doctor Alchemist is my choice."

"I'll go with this little guy." Adrian's choice spun out of his hand and became a little boy dressed in white armor in red trim. A clear helmet was on his head and he floated around his owner on jet boots, laughing and grinning. "Hero Kid."

"_A hero...and a villain, is it? How poetic. I almost feel as if we are in some children's show with a moral about teamwork." _Armityle didn't seem bothered by his opponents choices. "_If we're playing by house rules, Shadow Queen, then because my attack score is zero, I am allowed to make the first move, correct?"_

"Consider it the only courtesy I'll be granting you tonight." She told him curtly.

"_Thank you."_ Was the mocking reply and then he drew, adding a sixth card to the five he already held. "_I summon Disciple of Raviel in attack mode." _At first, what appeared looked to be a Phantasm Token, but after moment the Queen and Adrian realized it was simply a large man wearing a cloak and armor resembling one of the tokens. (1000/0)

"_Then I will set three cards face-down and end my turn." _The card appeared behind his monster. "_Come and get me, insects."_

"Just how stupid do you think we are that we can't see such a simple trap like that?" The Shadow Queen shook her head as she drew. "Allow me to demonstrate how easily such things are dismantled."

She flipped around a spell card in her hand. "Mystical Space Typhoon will destroy your center card." A tornado spun from the card and zipped across the field.

"_Fool. You fell into my trap all too easily."_ Armityle watched the card shatter_. "__That was Dowsing Point and now I may add any monster from my deck to my hand." _Snatching the card his deck spat out, he flipped it around to reveal Raviel's card. "_So thank you for the assistance."_

"You need all the help you can get." She slapped a card onto her disk. "I summon Terror Villain- Lycanthros in attack mode." A snarl echoed as a man lumbered out of the shadows near her. He was half-again as tall as the duelists, gaunt and lean. He had no shirt and his pants were tattered, while chain links dangling from broken restraints clanked against each other. His eyes were red and he snarled again, foaming slightly at the mouth. (1600/1500) "Then I'll just set two cards face-down and end my turn."

"Draw." Adrian did so and like the Queen before him, flipped around a spell card. "Reinforcement of the Army lets me add one level four Warrior-type monster from my deck to my hand." Snatching the card up, he placed it on his disk. "So let's welcome Elemental Hero- Stratos!" (1800/800)

A blue-colored hero appeared on his field and struck a pose, his fan backpack whirring to life to lift him off the field. "And when he's summoned, I can add one 'Hero' monster from my deck to my hand or destroy spell and trap cards equal to the number of Heroes in play, minus Stratos. I obviously choose the former."

He plucked another card free from his deck. "Then I set three cards face-down and end my turn."

"_Draw._" Armityle did so and a pleased expression appeared on his face. "_I activate the field spell card Temple of Armityle." _Around all three duelists, the shadows warped and roiled before suddenly they all standing on a stone floor. Dozens of hieroglyphs littered the cavernous structure and the only light came from torches mounted in brackets along the walls.

"This is...a pharaoh's tomb?" Adrian seemed mildly surprised at the surroundings, glancing around to and fro.

"How pretentious." The Queen sniffed in distaste at the scenery change, scowling slightly at the wall decorations. "Especially since the hieroglyphs seems to depict Armityle preforming various godly feats and receiving blood sacrifices."

"_Of course it does- this is my temple. At least, how it was in the old days." _He chuckled again as the pair regarded him with a bit of surprise. _"I have hated the gods for millennia and my three shapes mock their own-did you think is my first attempt to usurp them?"_

He pointed back behind himself and it was then they noticed the massive obsidian sarcophagus that was settled against the wall and wrapped tightly in chains. "_And what sleeps in this tomb is not a pharaoh or god, but something far more magnificent."_

His shadow body surged slightly, though it was nearly invisible in the half-darkness of the tomb and left only the white eyes and mouth of his face truly visible. "_But we'll get to that later. For now, __I will activate the continuous __spell __card- Congregation of __the__ Sacred Demons. As long as this card is in play, once per turn, I am allowed to select one of worshipers of my forms and summon another one of them from my deck so long __I give up my Normal Summon." _

A dark mist flowed from the spell card and it transformed into another Disciple. _"__Now, because I have two of my worshipers in play, I am allowed to special summon Priest of the Sacred Demons in from my hand!" _His new monster was taller than either of the other two, wearing a headdress that resembled Uria's head, a cloak that looked like Raviel's wings and armor that resembled Hamon's body. (2200/2000)

The priest immediately began to chant and spread out his arms, the two Disciples joining in as the room filled with their prayer. "_I activate the powers of my Priest. By revealing one of the Sacred Demons, I may answer his prayers." _He flipped around Raviel's card. "_Now I can summon a __Phantasm__ Token and thanks to my temple, whenever such tokens are summoned, a second is also summoned." _

Darkness billowed out from the temple's corners and piled up on itself before solidifying into a solid form that could only be described as 'Baby Raviel'. They hissed and chattered, doing their best to look intimidating. (1000/1000x2)

"_Now one of my Deckmaster effects comes into play."_ He laughed at the surprised expressions on Adrian and the Shadow Queen. "_I am __four__ monsters in one- do you think I would not have __four__ effects? By the power of my __Descent of the Mighty effect, I may special summon Raviel by sacrificing any Raviel monster I possess!"_

One of the Disciples vanished and then the shadows behind Armityle began to shred. That was the only way to describe as something pushed its way free of the darkness. It loomed over the playing field. Blue, bone-like armor covered a violet-tissue torso and great demonic wings spread as it roared to celebrate its freedom. "_Raviel, Lord of Phantasms, is summoned in attack mode!_" (4000/4000)

Raviel leaned forwards, snaring the two Phantasm Tokens in his hands and squeezing. _"By sacrificing two monsters I control, I can add their attack power to Raviel's!_" Energy flowed along Raviel's body as the tokens shattered and his attack score began to rise. (4000-6000/4000)

The remaining Disciple spread his arms, as a similar light surrounded him. (1000-3000)"_When Raviel increases his power, all Disciples gain the same amount of power he did! And now Raviel will begin the path to destruction! Attack with Shivering Scraper!" _

The Queen watched as Raviel's claw descended towards her Terror Villain. "Reveal continuous trap card-Immortality of the Beast!" Lycanthros howled and his arms shot out, grasping two of Raviel's fingers and somehow keeping the demon from crushing him instantly. "This trap equips to my Terror Villain and prevents its destruction via battle!" (SQLP: 3600)

One of her other cards flipped up, revealing a quick-play magic card. "Rage of the Beast can be activated when you deal me damage- one Terror Villain their attack score doubled, but must attack every turn." Lycanthros howled and showed the claw away, his body exploding with muscle as the frothing at his mouth thickened. (1600-3200)

"_You still nearly were crushed in my first attack, ant, do you feel that-" _Armityle broke off as suddenly a jet-black coin appeared on the playing field, flipping itself into the air instantly. "_What's this?"_

"Lycanthros' effect. When he battles a monster, but doesn't kill it, I flip a coin. Tails, nothing happens..." A smile spread on her face as the coin came crashing down, revealing a profile shot of her face. "Heads and I am allowed to activate one Full Moon Infection from my deck."

A spell card materialized on her field, the picture showing man on his knees under a full moon in a dark forest, aghast at the fur sprouting on his hands and fangs extending from his mouth. "This card now equips to the monster that Lycanthros battled and grants me control of it!"

"_What!?" _Armityle's eyes flew wide as Raviel faded into the darkness behind him, reappearing behind the Queen. "_You will pay for this disgrace!"_

"Good luck trying to make me."

"_Oh, I will ensure that I do!"_ The specter switched his attention to Adrian and pointed. "_Disciple! Destroy that pathetic hero!"_

"Was wondering when you'd remember I was here..." The Librarian watched as the Disciple charged across the field and smashed a fist into Stratos, shattering the hero into pixels. (ALP: 6800) "Reverse cards open!"

The two traps flipped up, both shooting out a beam of light that illuminated the ceiling of the temple with a giant 'H' and a giant 'D'. "Hero Signal and Destiny Signal both activate when one of my monsters dies in battle and lets me summon out a level four or lower hero from their respective teams! So here's Elemental Hero- Woodsman and Destiny Hero- Diamond Dude in defense mode!"

A short length of tree sprang up on his field, before revealing itself to be a muscular green humanoid with the tree making up its left arm. Simultaneously, a large diamond appeared on his field. Cracks spread across it and then it shattered into a man in a dark suit and cape with diamonds jutting out all over his body. Both heroes knelt and crossed their arms. (1000/2000) (1400/1600)

Hero Kid, who had been watching quietly over Adrian's shoulder, suddenly began to laugh and clapped his hands eagerly. "And this triggers the effect of my Deckmaster- Hero's Welcome! Whenever I special summon a 'Hero' monster, I can draw one card once per turn."

"_Draw all the cards you like- I still have one attack and that means you are going to be minus one more hero!" _The Priest began to chant and energy flowed between his hands before he flung it across the field at Woodsman

"I activate my set Mask Change!" Woodman glowed and suddenly was replaced by a tall gold-and-white armored figure with a blue cape and a golden sword. "By tributing a hero monster I can have, I can summon out a Masked Hero of the same attribute! So Masked Hero- Dian is now in play!" (2800/2000)

Adrian chuckled at the expression of shocked irritation Armityle's face. "Perhaps you're beginning to regret taking us both on? We just stole one of your big monsters and you gave me a very nice field set-up."

"_On the contrary..."_ Armityle's face settled into what could only be a relaxed expression. "_I'm glad the two of you are this strong for a pair of ants! In my Main Phase Two, I activate Card of Sanctity!_" Golden coins rained from the sky briefly."_Now we all refill our hands to six cards!" _

The duelists did so and Armityle plugged two of the cards he had gotten into his disk. "_I will keep these two face-down cards for later. My turn is over."_

"And your defeat starts." The Shadow Queen drew, slapping down a card. "I summon Terror Villain- Stitch Man in attack mode." The monster that appeared was definitely meant to be modeled after Frakenstein's monster- a human in worn clothing with stitches running across portions of his body where he had been spliced together. Despite this, he was bulky and muscular and could have easily been confused for a bear. (1900/1400)

"Raviel! Shivering Scraper!" The demon rumbled, but did not move. "What are you doing? I ordered you to attack!"

Armityle's was laughter was incredibly mocking. "_Fool! Raviel is me and I am it! What purpose would I fulfill if I stupidly attacked myself?" _

'"Fine then, at least it's out of your hands. Lycanthros attacks your Disciple!" The man charged, tackling the Disciple. Blood sprayed as he ripped the other man's throat out with his teeth. (AMLP: 7800)

"_And now I reveal one of my continuous trap cards__- __Martyr Of The Sacred Demons__. Since you destroyed one of my congregation, I may summon another from my deck. Come forth, Disciple of Uria." _Like the previous Disciple, this was one dressed in homage to their chosen deity though not as obviously. A black-haired woman, she wore flame-patterned robes, clasped by a rather large infinity symbol. (1000/1000)

"_Of course, this does trigger Raviel's effect for you." _Raviel rumbled and extended a hand, energy flowing from it to resolve into a Phantasm Token kneeling on the Queen's field.

"Stitch Man attacks!" The piecemeal let out an unintelligible growl and lumbered forwards, grabbing the Disciple in a massive bear hug. The woman flailed in agony as the monster squeezed hard and hard, nearly bending her in two before she shattered into pixels. (AMLP: 6900)

The Queen gave a slight scowl as the Martyr Of The Sacred Demons glowed and another Disciple of Uria appeared. A second later, another Phantasm Token appeared on her side of the field as well. "I end my turn." She cast a look at Adrian. "Try not to kill our momentum."

"Not a problem." Adrian snapped his card free and then grabbed a different one from his hand. "Stage Select lets me shuffle my opponent's deck and then place any card from my deck on top of it." He lifted an eyebrow at Armityle expectantly.

"_I will do my own shuffling, thank you. This deck is a piece of myself and I'd rather not any any ants handle it." _The specter complied, popping his deck free and shuffling a couple of times before returning it to his disk.

"Whatever you say." Diamond Dude's protrusions began to shine. "I'll use his effect now- revealing the top card of my deck and if its a normal spell card, I can send it it to my graveyard. Anything else is placed on the bottom of my deck." He plucked the card free and held it up, revealing it to be Miracle Fusion. "As if there was any doubt."

Placing the card into his graveyard, he pulled another card free from his hand. "Foolish Burial lets me send a monster from my deck to my graveyard." A card slid free and he deftly placed it into his graveyard before taking a card from his hand and sliding it in after it. "And by discarding King of the Swamp, I can add 'Polymerization from my deck to my hand."

Catching the card, he held it up. "And now I'll use it to fuse Elemental Hero Ocean and Vision Hero-Increase in my hand together to form Elemental Hero Absolute Zero." A pillar of water erupted on his field, then froze instantly. A second later, it cracked and then shattered to reveal the fusion. Covered in white angular armor from head to toe, bits of ice and frost swirling around him, he was an imposing sight. (2500/2000)

Hero Kid clapped his hands again and Adrian drew for the Deckmaster's effect. "Since you have a monster in play, I can summon out Evil Hero-Malicious Edge with one tribute! So begone, Diamond Dude!" The diamond-covered hero vanished, replaced by a tall, lanky dark purple-skinned being with spiked belts wrapped around his legs and arms and spikes mounted on his wrists. (2600/1800) "Dian attacks your Priest with Verdant Sword Slash!"

The armored hero leapt across the field, easily cleaving the Priest in two with a single mighty blow. (AMLP: 6500) "And since Dian destroyed a monster in battle, I can call forth any level four or lower hero from my deck so here's my Elemental Hero Flash!" A bolt of lightning struck his field, resolving into a man wearing a skin-tight blue suit with fins on the back. He struck a pose and lighting surged around him. (1100/1600) "And he'll attack your Disciple!"

Lightning shot from the hero's extended palm and hit the woman, causing her to writhe before she blew apart into pixels. "_By the effect of my continuous trap card, I summon my third Disciple of Uria in defense mode." _A new woman appeared, kneeling.

"Bad for you then, since my Malicious Edge can deal damage through defense! _Devil Spiker!_" The hero sprinted forwards, skewering the woman through the chest. (AMLP:5200)

"_I choose to summon Disciple of Hamon in defense mode." Like the other two, this one resembled his god- but he wore golden and black armor that looked like Hamon's bony structure and wielded a shield like its wings, which was large enough to cover the Disciple entirely as he knelt._ (0/1000)

"Mmm...attacking you will just only thin your deck out more, so I choose not to follow up with Absolute Zero. Instead, I move to Main Phase 2." Adrian slid a card into his disk and watched it appear behind his row of monsters. "End turn."

"_I draw."_ Armityle plucked the card off his deck. _"I activate my second Deckmaster ability- Descent of Fire allows me send a single Continuous Trap Card to my graveyard bring forth Uria, Lord of Searing Flames!" _His Martyr of the Sacred Beast suddenly burst into flames and scattered apart, each piece swirling around him to ignite the air into an inferno. It coalesced into the burnt-red form of Uria, the armor falling over the black, fang-filled mouth last. Its body wound and looped before simply vanishing into the shadows behind Armityle, apparently too big to fit in the chamber completely (0-4000/0)

"What? How did its attack score get so high? You've only got one Continuous Trap Card in your graveyard!" Adrian braced himself as Uria swung its head towards him, flames licking out of its mouth as if it was angry at him for questioning its power.

"_While in my graveyard, the Disciples of Uria count as continuous trap cards, thus powering its effect. And I'll be activating its second one right now! I can once per turn target and destroy a face-down card! And you cannot chain! Hellfire!" _Uria's eyes flashed. Adrian was forced to shield his face with an arm as a pillar of flames erupted from underneath his set card and turned it into ash instantly.

"_And do not think you have escaped either, Shadow Queen. By the effect of my Temple, whenever Uria destroys a card, another one of your magic or trap cards is destroyed!" _Fire erupted underneath the Queen's Full Moon Infection card, vaporizing it. Armityle grinned as Raviel vanished from the Queen's and reappeared behind him. _"__I activate the spell card __Supreme__ Blaze."_

Uria roared and slithered forwards some to loom over the playing field. Its claws gouged furrows in the temple's floor as it lowered itself closer, flames flicking in and around its mouth. _"Uria may now attack all of my opponent's monsters at once, though I can only pick one of you given the circumstances and only it may attack. These attacks may not be chained to." _

Adrian watched as the Sacred Demon swung its head in line with his field, powerful jaw opening to razor-sharp teeth and a swirling inferno of flames that was slowly gathering in size. He locked eyes with Uria. "You're an overgrown excuse for an iguana."

Armityle hissed and held out his hand. _"Supreme Blaze."_

Uria unleashed its fury, fire and heat flooding from its mouth to completely consume Adrian and his field.

TTTTTTT

_Water sluiced down her body as she rose from the bath, becoming little rivets and then drops that trickled down. They almost reluctantly released their hold on her curves and splashed against the stone floor as she made her way towards her bedroom. Her floor-length hair hung wet and heavy, the tips tracing ripples through the shallow puddles. _

_Steam had filled the room from due to the magically warmed water and it trailed from her body like streamers as she passed through the doorway. It was a magical sight, like she and her perfect body were some kind of fantasy emerging from the depths of the imagination. And it was one she had seen have amazing effects on her playthings and diversions, cementing the already powerful hold her exotic allure had._

_Her latest conquest had already left, the bed made and the food and drink cleared and even the remains of his clothing had been picked up. A wise decision on his part. Despite his own station, it wouldn't do think that he could maintain her interests for more than he had. More than one overeager lord or general or lady had done well to find her emerging from her bath with a scowl and not the smile they had hoped for. _

_Had he been a lord? Or some kind of noble? She couldn't recall and probably wouldn't have cared any more if she had. If there were any political ramifications, they would be dealt with. She doubted there would be, even his name had slipped from her mind while she had been in the bath and if he hadn't been important enough to remember, it was hardly worth considering. _

_Ignoring the fresh set of clothing that had been set out of her, she simply pulled a robe off the bedpost and slid it on as she settled down at the her table. A crook of a finger caused the teacup to slid over to her grasp and another gesture instantly caused to come to a boil. _

_The warm liquid trickled down her throat and passed her sigh on the way before she took a bite of bread more out of lack of anything to do than any real hunger. _

"_Boredom ill suits you. Shall I summon a demon and slay it for your amusement?" _

_She smiled slightly as he emerged from the shadows. "Whilst I enjoy seeing your battles, there is nothing you could call forth that would be a challenge for you anymore, my shadow."_

"_Perhaps, but where it to relieve your monotony for a single moment, then I would slay anything until the corpses were as high as the Palace." He stood behind her. _

"_A bold promise and a difficult one to fulfill." She noted and leaned back in her chair as his gathered up some of her hair and began to brush it. "Did you return all the way from your journey just to brush my hair?"_

"_You have given me many tasks in our years together. Some are to be taken more seriously than others." He shifted bunches of hair. _

"_Priorities for you are fluid, as always." The Queen felt him step closer, his breath stirring her hair ever-so slightly. "Still, I am pleased that you have returned unharmed. There is precious little to do on my own." _

"_Do your dalliances and parties not provide adequate entertainment? It seems you are hosting a great many of them as of late." _

"_Minor diversions at best. They don't excite me as they use to and none prove of any worth." His hand slid up from the chair to her shoulder as he changed his stance and she was surprised at how soft it felt. "None have dared even to attempt to court me in ages." _

"_What of General Lan'tao? He seems to be sending you rare plants and flowers and spell components and all manner of finery and wealth. He acts as if he as wealthy as you."_

"_Lan'tao is best kept at arm's length. He feels is a poisonous flower, deadly and beauty. His skill is nearly equal to his ego." She chuckled. "Let him think his thorns may prick me, but I simply do not wish to crush him on accident. Useful pawns are hard to come by." _

"_As are ones who dedicate their honeyed tongues and wealth to gracing you and your name." He snorted derisively. _

_The chuckle became a smile of amusement. "Are you jealous, my shadow?"_

"_Not in the least. The oath we swore has been kept and I do not doubt that it shall be fulfilled forever hence."_

"_Mmm, really? Is that all your feelings consist of? Eighty years, I have kept you by my side." She tilted her head back and to the side so that she could gaze at his face. "And you have not once felt even a twinge of desire or lust towards me? Do not all the suitors and conquests who have boasted of being in my bed not stir annoyance or frustration in you?"_

"_You know my feelings as well as your own." He said briskly. "And I know that they are merely diversions. I have captured your attention in a manner that suits me."_

"_I do know your feelings, my shadow." She felt the brush stop as she slid one of her hands between the fingers the one on her shoulder. "And I feel that to see others in my bed, to know what they do to me angers you. That I have given you my life, yet you seem to be missing out on the rest. For a man like who gives his all, to not receive it in return must torment you." _

"_Then you have read them incorrectly." He informed her, but she could see his stormy eyes linger on their intertwined hands and the slide back over to her face. _

"_Have I? You are not a complex man. You are simple...primal and natural. Your passion and energy bleed from you like blood from a wound...passions I have been pleased to have not dulled in the years..." She shifted in the chair, adjusting the robe in just such away and smiled tantalizingly. "Have you not ever wanted to express them in a different form of battle? Or does it frighten you, perhaps? That you could lose?"_

"_Battle does not scare me and I do not suffer defeat easily." He replied softly and she felt his hand shift against her, his eyes wandering slowly away from her face._

"_A challenge for us both, then...and you defeated me once." Her other hand slid up his chest by its fingertips, coming to grip his chin softly. "I have yet to return the favor." _

"_It will not happen." Despite his words, he did not resist as she guided him down._

"_I beg to differ." Then were no more words between them as she pulled their mouths together. _

_Her hands gripped the arm on her shoulder and pulled him around in front her, breaking their kiss so she could nip his lower lip and then lick the blood that welled up. Then he was kissing her fervently, passionately and dragging his leg up onto her lap so as to boost himself above her height. _

_But she just giggled as they parted for air again and pushed him away, leaving him to stumble back. "Oh no, my shadow. We will do this by my rules or not at all." _

_He gave her a curious look, licking the blood away from his lip. "And that would be?"_

_She settled regally against the chair, robe barely covering her breasts a she pulled a length of it up. "A sign of your devotion to the prize you want." A slender, long leg was extended. "A kiss upon my thigh, to swear a new fealty to me. To your Queen."_

_The imperious look she gave was a hint that it was to not be taken lightly. _

_He stared at her for a long moment, then stepped forwards and knelt on both knees slowly. "It shall be as you say...Your Majesty." He ducked his head slowly towards the proffered leg. _

_Then her hand buried itself in his hair and she stormed him to her feet, throwing him to his violently. _

_He staggered, stumbled and then was slammed against the wall by a sharp gesture from her. "What are you-"_

"You are not my shadow!" She hissed furiously. "And your audacity towards me will be your death!" A jet of flame lanced forth, but to her surprise, he vanished in a poof of smoke and left the bolt to sear a mark on the wall. "How-"

"_I'm sorry, please don't kill me!" Scurrying past her as fast as his little feet could carry him was the oddest creature she had ever seen. It was barely up to her knee, round in general appearance and wearing a large white sheet with mouth and eye holes. And atop his head was a pointed hat that wobbled back and forth as he made for the door. "It was just business, you can't kill a person for doing his job, right!?"_

"_I have killed people for less, shape shifter." A sword pierced the sheet and buried itself in the stone, trapping the little...thing...and leaving him flailing comically. _

"_How long have you been there?" The Queen demanded as her shadow-the real one-stepped into the room. Unlike his doppelganger, his appearance was worn and bloody, tattered. _

"_I have only just returned from my journey to England." He replied and then stepped forwards to loom over the little creature that was desperately trying to pull his sheet free from the sword. "Now then, little thing, you will tell us what is going on."_

"_It's just business! I was hired to impersonate someone, like always!" The creature exclaimed desperately. _

"_And why me?" The shadow asked curtly. "As you found out, it is impossible to do so."_

"_It wasn't supposed to be for me!" The creature babbled. "I steal more than appearance, I take their names and memories and powers and identity! I become that person!"_

"_I choose you because you were on your journey and you were the only one who could get close to the Queen without anyone getting suspicious." He gulped and waved a sheet-wearing hand at the shadow. "But it didn't work like it should have! I didn't get everything I needed! It was like pulling water from a stone! Your sense of self was too strong!" _

"_And you were sent here in the first place to what? Assassinate me? It should be common knowledge that is impossible." The Queen's shadow falling over the creature caused him to yelp and flinch. _

"_No, no! I was to try to kill you and then escape to join up with a band of rebels! The incident was supposed to distract you with a civil war and leave the Empire unattended!" The creature stammered. "We were originally to just copy you and hide you away, but I couldn't do it! You don't even have a name!"_

"_Good." The ice on her voice made him freeze in fear. "If you pried too far, little thing, I would be forced to kill you on principle." She lifted a finger and a small bead of deadly looking light appeared on the tip. "Give me a reason not to kill you now on a whim." _

"_I'll tell you everything! And...and...swear my loyalty to you!" He trembled, from the tip of his hat to the edges of his sheet. "I promise that I swear to swear!" _

_The Queen and her shadow exchanged glances and then looked back him. The shadow reached and pulled his sword free from the stone. "Very well, little shape shifter. You will live. For now."_

"_Oh thank you, thank you! I-" His relieved babbling was silenced as the Queen snapped her fingers and vanished him in a burst of shadow. _

"_Where did you send him?"_

"_The second level. I have a feeling that he will prove to very annoying in the future and wanted to get a head start." She let out a small growl and flipped the wet strands of her hair over her shoulder. "I will get the information from him personally later."_

"_You do not wish to now?"_

"_No, I do not." Frustration mounted and she flopped back into her chair with an irritated look. "Did you get what you were after?" _

"_I did." He held out his palm, revealing a pair of thumbnail-sized blue gems. They glittered unnaturally, as if they contained an inner light._

"_Dragon's Eye Sapphires." She regarded them with mild interest. "Those are rather rare. How did you acquire them?"_

"_There is a young knight by the name of Jalal Storm bringer. These jewels were part of horde he recently claimed by defeating a dragon named Malys. I challenged him for them."_

"_Stormbringer..." She propped her chin up in her hand, watched as he returned the jewels to their pouch on his belt. "Why is that name familiar?"_

"_His father, Jamor, was the one who won immortality in a contest of wits. Jalal has acquired it, it seems." A feral, pleased smile. "He is young, but strong. It was...entertaining...to fight him. I would like to do so again in a few hundred years, when he has gained experience." _

_He tilted his head at her curiously. "How did you know that he was an impostor?"_

"_You have never knelt before me in any circumstance nor never addressed me by any title in all the years we have been together. He may have known about you, but he obviously lacked your spine." Now it was her turn to be curious. "Why?'_

"_We have sworn our hearts to one another, given each other everything. To acknowledge a lesser bond or offer pledges is an insult-they simply cannot compare." He said firmly. _

_A delicate eyebrow was raised. "You speak as if we are equals."_

"_You speak as if we are not." He countered. "Is that how you see the oath we swore? That I am simply another knight in you service?" _

"_No...no, you are not. You are my shadow and my Champion. You are mine..." A smile flitted across her face. "But you are right in that we are equals, yet I seem to have been doing more taking than giving."_

"_You have given me everything I have ever needed."_

"_And now I give you a gift." She rose from the chair, letting the robe drop to the floor idly. "The last of of the everything we swore to exchange."_

_She chuckled as she saw an actual surprised look on his face and sauntered towards him, the tips of her full breasts and her hips swaying enticingly. "Did you not think this would be a possibility with me?"_

"_You wish for me to attend to you?" He almost seemed nervous, but did not resist as she slid herself up against him. _

"_No, because, as you have said, to ask for a lesser sign of devotion is an insult compared to our bargain." She raked a hand up through crystalline black hair, smiling at the silky softness. Her other hand traced his lips with a finger. "But if we are truly equals, then we should not be able dominate the other, my shadow...so why don't you disprove the rumors that say I have tamed a monster."_

"_I am hardly tame." His voice was husky and he pulled her closer. _

_An affectionate laugh slid from her throat. "That is what I desire. You are wild and passionate, yes?" She kissed him ferociously. "Give that to me..."_

"_And in exchange, my...equal...?" He tangled a hand in her hair, the other caressing her curves. _

"_I give you your Queen." Her breath quickened as she threaded a leg between his and pressed tighter against him. "Prove you deserve to be the one to reign over her." _

"_As you say..." _

"_Always, my shadow..." She dragged him towards the bed, kissing him tenderly and gently stripping away his clothes and armor. "Always..."_

TTTTTTT

The flames roiled and lashed wildly almost as if they were solid, roaring as if they were alive and so intense that the Queen had to take a few steps back to get away from the blaze.

It didn't go unnoticed by Armityle and he sneered. "_So the Queen of all shadow fears a little light, does she? Or does the loss of your partner actually bother you?"_

"Light is hardly anything to worry about, Armityle and as for the Librarian, he's hardly dead." She glanced over at the inferno. "Hurry up and make your dramatic comeback already, fool. We're in the middle of something important!"

"Sheesh, ruin my fun why don't you?" Adrian's voice emerged from the flames and then suddenly, the fires were pushed away and smothered out of existence by a strong current of air. The Librarian himself was relatively untouched, though a few wisps of smoke were rising from form. Hero Kid poked his head out from behind him, looking very surprised that they were alive. (ALP: 3000)

"Your idea of fun is a tummy rub and a sunny windowsill to sleep in," She groused at him. "Not all that hard to get it."

"Why? You offering?" He lifted an eyebrow expectantly and then snickered as she rolled her eyes. "Alright, back to the duel."

He glanced down at smoking line of ash that had been his monster zones and then up at Armityle. "That was a pretty big hit, but you also triggered two of my monster's effects when you killed them in battle." Ghosts of Absolute Zero and Flash appeared behind him, then the ice hero struck a pose. "When Absolute Zero leaves the field any manner, all monsters on your field are destroyed!"

"_I chain with the counter trap, Divine Wrath. By discarding a card, one monster effect is negated and its source destroyed." _He idly slid a card into his graveyard and a bolt of lightning lanced from the trap, erasing Absolute Zero's ghost instantly.

Adrian frowned slightly, but then gestured to Flash's ghost. "Since you destroyed him, I can banish him and three other E-Heroes from the graveyard to add any one normal Spell to my hand." Images of Flash, Ocean, Absolute Zero and Stratos appeared behind him before vanishing. "I choose to add Reinforcement of the Army."

He grabbed Polymerization and then a second card slid out of his graveyard. "Since I took battle damage, I can move Vision Hero Increase from my graveyard to my spell and trap zone." The monster's card shimmered into existence in front of him.

"_Play at defending yourself all you want, it will do no good." _Armityle pointed to his field. "_By the effect of Congregation of the Sacred Demons, I summon another Disciple of Hamon by forfeiting my normal summon." _A portal opened on his field and a second of the worshipers appeared, crouching behind his shield. "_I set one card face-down and end my turn."_

"About time its back to me." The Shadow Queen drew. "I sacrifice both of the Phantasm Tokens I posses to summon Terror Villain- Phantom Grasp!" The two tokens simply didn't vanish- strong, corded strands of web came whipping out of the darkness and snared them. They struggled for a moment and then were yanked into the darkness behind her. Her new monster didn't appear-only the fact the there was a chomping noise and a scuttling sound along with the stat box proved its existence. (2700/2100)

"_A weakling compared to my Sacred Demons." _Armityle mocked even as Raviel stretched out a hand and generated a Phantasm Token for him, followed by a second from his field spell. (1000/1000x2) "_And your Lycanthros must still attack me, mustn't it?" _

"Oh, I fully intend to attack you, Armityle. I just need to make some preparations first." A small, dark smirk quirked her lips. "I activate the effect of my Terror Villains! _Beast Out!" _

"_Beast...Out?" _The specter regarded her with confusion and then his eyes widened as he saw what she meant. Lycanthros fell to all fours, howling and drooling as his skin began to crack and split before it peeled away to reveal the body of a massive wolf, bones creaking and cracking as his face elongated into a muzzle.

Stitch Man bellowed angrily and somehow, lightning struck him. As it did so, his body bulged with muscle and his stitches strained to keep his body together despite his new power. Something wasn't quite blood, but red and black leaked from between them as he ripped his shirt off, roaring and eyes burning red with unspent anger. (1900-2400/0)

And the unearthly screeching and thrashing from behind her indicated her Phantom Grasp was undergoing the same kind of effect. "_What have you done, ant!?"_

"My Terror Villains all posses the ability to change their Type to give themselves new abilities. At the moment, only Stitch Man gets anything useful, as he's become a berserker and raised his own score by fie hundred. They are now all Beasts. Meaning some of the more potent cards in the game will affect them. Like my Big March of the Animals, giving them all two hundred attack points for every each Beast I have in play." (3200-3800) (2400-3000) (2700-3300)

A new spell card shimmered into existence in front of her. "Or even the powerful Wild Nature's Release, adding a Beast's defense score to its attack." Phantom Grasp's screeching intensified and the temple echoed with loud crashes and scraps-it was clawing violently at the walls. (3300-5400)

"This particular branch of the Terror Villains represents the unrelenting nightmares that these creatures are, as you're about to experience first hand, Armityle! Stitch Man, attack and destroy one of the Disciples of Hamon!_" _Stitch Man charged across the field, clenching his fists and roaring.

"_I activate Immortal Tribute, sacrificing my two Phantasm Tokens to summon a level seven or higher monster from my graveyard. And since my target is Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder, I can ignore his summoning conditions!" _The two tokens vanished and thunder rumbled within the temple. Then a brilliant flash illuminated the darkness briefly and when it faded, the golden skeletal from of Hamon was there, his hooked-arms and wings crossed over himself protectively. (4000/4000) "_With Hamon in defense mode, you cannot target any other of my monsters for attacks!"_

The Shadow Queen pursed her lips as Stitch Man roared and charged for the new arrival, only for a single motion of Hamon's arm to send him flying back to her field. "Stitch Man must attack in his current form." She gestured. "Phantom Grasp, rid the field of Hamon!" (SLP: 2600)

Both Adrian and Armityle visibly flinched as with a terrible cacophony, Phantom Grasp flung itself out of the darkness. It was titanic spider, easily the size of the average car. But thanks to its own effect and the power of Wild Nature's Release, it was a freak of nature. What looked like veins surged with _something_ all over its exoskeleton, its whole body swollen out of proportion, with some of its legs the thickness of tree trunks and others flimsy. Any hair it had glinted like razors and its eyes were seething with animalistic fury, something acidic dripping from its maw. It shrieked as it latched itself onto Hamon, striking and biting at it in a frenzy.

"_The effect of Temple with Hamon in play- once per turn, any monster that attacks it while it is in defense mode is destroyed!" _Hamon managed to tear Phantom Grasp off and threw the smaller monster to the floor. The spider flailed desperately on its back, rocking in an effort to righten itself...unto Hamon's hooked blade-arm drove through its abdomen with such force that it exploded, a bubbling green liquid hissing across the stone floor. _"Disgusting abomination..."_

"When Phantom Grasp is destroyed as beast, it triggers its special ability." The acid suddenly morphed into dozens of little spiders that scuttled back across the fields towards the Shadow Queen. Once there, they gathered together into little piles that morphed into dog-sized spiders. "I get two Terror Spawn Tokens." (500/500)

"Unfortunately, my Lycanthros must attack as well." Lycanthros roared and charged towards Hamon, only to be swatted away. (SQLP:2400) "In my main phase two, I activate the spell card known as Sleeping Terror. I can select one level five or higher Terror Villain in my deck and send it to the graveyard. If I summon my chosen monster from my graveyard, it gains one thousand attack points." A card popped out of her deck and she slipped it into her graveyard slot.

She snapped her fingers and her set card flipped up. "Awaken The Terror is a trap that lets me tribute two monsters on my field to summon a Terror Villain my graveyard!" The two Terror Spawn Tokens were swallowed by jets of sand and yanked under the floor. Then sand began to pour from between the cracks of the floor and whipped together. Bandages appeared out of nowhere and wrapped themselves around the new being as the sand pulled together in a roughly humanoid shape. When it was done, it was a mummy that easily stood half-again as tall as the Queen, its moaning sounding like the wind crying. (3000-4000/2000)

"And thanks to Awaken The Terror, since my Curse Stalker is level eight, I may draw two cards." Snapping them off her deck, she studied them for a moment and slid one into her disk. "I set this and end my turn."

"Draw!" Adrian glanced up at the three looming Sacred Beasts on the field. (_Armityle's deck is impressive- he's exploiting their powers with ease and thanks to his Deckmaster abilities, they're easy-to-summon power in a card. But the Shadow Queen used up all of his defenses in her attack and these things lack the immunities of true god cards.) _"I'll use Reinforcement of the Army to add another Vision Hero Increase from my deck to my hand and I'll summon him!"

A stout hero in black and green armor appeared, spikes curving up from his shoulders and his head. (900/1100) "And now I'll use the effect of the one in my spell and trap zone- sacrificing another Vision Hero to bring him back into play!" Increase vanished, only to be replaced by an exact duplicate crouching in defense mode. "And since I've done that, I can summon any Hero monster from my deck! Come forth, Vision Hero Witch Raider!"

A card floated out from his deck and spun out into the playing field, resolving into a tall, silver-haired woman in a dark dress and wearing a rather large witch's hat. In her right hand was a pipe-like staff, with a curved bladed portion at one end and what looked like a cannon tucked into the other. "When Witch Raider is summoned, all of my opponent's spell and trap cards are destroyed! _Magic Raid!" _(2700/1900)

Witch Raider twirled her staff in one hand and then blurred out of sight, images of her appearing in front of and slicing through each of Armityle's cards. Armityle himself hissed in vexation, but remained calm. _"My Temple cannot be destroyed so easily!" _

"That's fine, I just wanted to take away your card advantage there. Now to deal with your demons." The Librarian held up a spell card. "Destiny Draw lets me discard a D-Hero to draw two cards."

Even as he did so, another spell card appeared on his field. "Over Destiny activates! Since the D-Hero I discarded was level six, I can summon another D-Hero who's level is half or less!" Shadows pulled together on his field and then were flung apart to reveal themselves to be a cape. The wearer was a gaunt hero with lanky arms and hands tipped with talons. "Destiny Hero-Doom Lord" (600/800)

Armityle sneered as Doom Lord leapt forwards and drove a fist into Uria's body. The demon looked at the much smaller moment with annoyance, but was cut off in mid-roar as Doom Lord's special ability sent Uria two turns into the future. _"Was defeating one of my demons so difficult that you just decided to be a coward, cat?" _

"You're using full-power versions of these guys and unlike the other two, Uria has that nasty self-revive power that I'd rather not deal with." Adrian's graveyard began to glow. "I banish the Destiny Hero- Malicious from my graveyard to summon another one from my deck!" The glow leapt onto his field and became a powerfully built demon, complete with great leather wings and cloven hooves. (800/800)

"But before I do something totally cool, I'll use the Miracle Fusion that Diamond Dude sent to my graveyard last turn to banish Elemental Hero Prisma and Woodsman to summon forth Elemental Hero- The Shining!" Light erupted onto Adrian's field, resolving into a tall warrior completely covered in white armor. A gigantic golden arch rose up behind him, prongs lancing away from it like rays of light from a sunburst. "And for every Elemental Hero I have banished, he gains three hundred attack points!" (2600-4400/2100)

Increase, Doom Lord and Malicious all became swirls cloudy darkness. "By tributing three monsters on my field, I call forth one of the most powerful heroes in existence!" The three tornadoes merged and the winds were scattered as a large dragon's head tore free. It was revealed to be the arm of Adrian's new monster, an imposing warrior in dark clothing with tattered leathery wings, an armored tail and a cold glare that promised no mercy. "Destiny Hero- Bloo-D!" (1900/600)

Hamon and Raviel rumbled in pain as their colors began to fade as Bloo-D's effect activated and sapped them of their powers. Then the golden demon staggered and stumbled, roaring as it vainly tried to struggle against the vacuum-like pull of Bloo-D's dragon-head arm. But despite its power and size, it was ultimately just another monster like any other and Hamon broke apart into a golden stream of particles that were summarily absorbed. Bloo-D clenched his normal fist as golden lighting crackled around his body and a similar sheen covered his wings, savoring the demon's might and suffering at being part of him now. (1900-3900)

"_You dare to use to insult me like using one of my aspects like it was an accessory?!" _Armityle seethed with rage.

"I dare a lot of things, Armityle. And right now, I dare you to stop me." Adrian pointed at his fusion hero, who struck a pose as light began to radiate from the sun on his back. "_Shining Knuckle!" _

The Shining sprinted across the field, leaping up between Raviel's futilely grasping claws as all the light he was emitting gathered at his fist. The demonic being roared in defiance, but it was silenced as The Shining's punch blew right through his face. A second later, golden light erupted from all over Raviel's body and blew him to pieces. (AMLP: 4800)

"Now lets' clean up those Disciples! _Witch Blast_ and _Hell Skyfire!' _Witch Raid easily incinerated one of the Disciples with a blast from her staff and Bloo-D raised his dragon arm, unleashing a bolt of red and gold energy into the air. A second later, half-dozen of the same bolts came down from the shadowed ceiling and blew the other one into pixels.

Armityle growled as he avoided pieces of falling Raviel, his white eyes glaring at the Librarian. "_You will pay for..." _Then they widened as he saw the card Adrian was holding up. _"Surprise Attack...From The Darkness..."_

"Yep." Adrian was grinning like a cat who just gotten a bowlful of cream. "My End Phase is now a Battle Phase."

The specter didn't even have time to react as Witch Raid and Bloo-D trashed his two Phantasm Tokens. _"You! I will-" _

That was all he got out as The Shining slammed a Shining Knuckle into his face and a torrent of light swallowed him up.

TTTTTT

"_It is another proxy?"_

"_So I am informed." The Queen strode down the hall purposefully, leading him in towards something. The twists and turns they had already taken were nearly maze-like. "According to my benefactor, one of his rivals seems to have taken offense to something and has decided to slight my benefactor by destroying me." _

"_A task they will not achieve." He said firmly. "I have killed this proxy five times as it stands. If I must do so a hundred more, it will be done."_

_Though she did not turn to face him, he could see the smile she gained through the shift in her posture as it became almost noticeably more relaxed. "I do not doubt that, my Champion. But your own ferocity and skill are not enough to slay my enemy permanently." _

"_Its immunity to magic gives me little recourse." He pointed out. "Even your greatest of spells had no effect on this proxy and the damage it can inflict seems to ignore the magic that makes you immortal, as well any enchantments on our weapons and armor."_

"_Yes..." She was frowning now, feeling the twinge of pain from her side. It was bandaged under her dress and healing well, but it still hurt and she was unquestionably frustrated by the fact her immortality and power could not simply rid her of it. "However, my benefactor has informed me that there is a way to destroy this demon forever by the use of magic, despite the immunity."_

"_This is the purpose of our destination?"  
_

"_Yes." Guiding him around a corner, she stopped in front of a door. "There is material not of this world called crysmanthium. Though it is very rare, it is worthless for anything practical and useful because it is so brittle that it crumbles under the slightest pressure."_

"_And we desire this crysmanthium because you have a way make it useful." He opened the door for her, fall back into step behind her as she entered. _

"_I do. If crysmanthium is plied with powerful blood magic, it can be shaped and forged. However, to do what my benefactor has suggested with it, it would require more blood than is available in a mortal body. And because mixing magical bloods together causes a violent reaction..."_

"_We are going to use yours, because your unique immortality means that not matter how much blood you lose, you will not die. "She could hear the frown in his voice. "Are you sure you wish to go to such lengths? Whatever we forge with this method with a weapon inexorably tied to you and your power. It may be able to channel your power, but should it be turned against you, it could destroy you."_

"_Which is why I am giving it to you, my shadow. There are none I trust more than you." They passed through the darkness of the entryway, emerging into a snow-covered landscape that seemed to stretch to the horizon in all directions. The white monotony was only broken by strange mountain not far off in the distance, comprised of what looked like swirled crystal and ice. _

_Thankfully, there was no wind, but the chill in the air was strong. A simple application of magic warmed the air around her. "We must be swift in our efforts, the crysmanthium must be forged in the cold and the heat of the magic could wind up-"_

_She stopped as she realized she could not hear his footsteps crunching through the snow behind her. Frowning, she turned around so him standing a few steps past the entrance, regarding the snow with confusion. "What are you doing?"_

"_I have never seen this before." He crouched down, sliding his hand through a few inches of it. "It looks soft, but is hard...and seems to bear warmth, but is cold."_

"_It is snow. That is what it is. Frozen water." Her frown deepened. "How can you be surprised by this? It is no different than ice and you have experienced that many times before."_

"_Ice is cold and clear, easy to discern...this is not...if it is frozen water, should it not be clear? Why does it appear to be white?" He scooped up a handful, squeezing it together to form a rough ball. "And it sticks to itself, despite being cold and ice...is not slippery, either..." _

"_You may as well ask why the sky is blue or the sun yellow. The question nor the answer matter. It is what it is." She said, dismissing his questions and the snow with a wave of her hand. "No different than rain, it just water from the sky. Now come. We must-"_

_That was when the snowball hit her face. _

_It was so unexpected and so surprising that she could only stand there and stare surprise at him, bits of snow sliding down her face as the spell she was using melted it away. _

"_I wished to see if, like ice, it would made a useful emergency projectile weapon. I apologize-you were the only target on this flat landscape." He said, so matter-of-fact and sincere that he could have been explaining to her that he had been giving her a jewels and apologizing for the lack of quality. "I see that my theory is using it was a weapon was a gross overestimation in my part." _

_She blinked and then wiped away the last remnants of the snow off her face, a strange look sliding over her face. One could have almost called it...playful. "Oh, no, my dear shadow. Your theory is correct, you simply used the incorrect method." _

"_There is a correct method?" His question was so sincere that he regarded her with confusion at the truly playful smile appearing on her face. Then his own eyes widened as she snapped her fingers and he saw shadows swirl at his feet. _

_The snow around erupted violently, a white geyser that surrounded him completely. When it settled, he was buried completely under the white stuff, only the gray and black lights that were his eyes visible. _

_And despite the muffling effect the snow, he could hear a rather strange sound. It took him a moment to puzzle it out, because he had heard it before._

_She was _laughing.

_But it was not the chuckle of pride or victory, nor the mocking laugh at the ludicrous nature of others or any other laugh he had ever heard her give before. It was pure and strong, simple. _

_Child-like. _

_He could make her out, her hand over her mouth to stifle the laughter, but it was in vain. And as he wriggled himself of the pile limb by limb, she gave up entirely. Her arms wrapped around her sides and she shook her head over and over, as if unable to believe what she was seeing._

"_Are you alright?" He asked, brushing the last bits of snow off him and raking a hand through his hair to clear it. Then the snow erupted again, but this time he was managed to move. It wasn't quite enough and he would up half-coated in it. _

_He fixed her with a scowl as her laughter doubled. "Please stop that. I do not think I look good in white."_

_The scowl deepened as his request seemed to propel her further on, the Queen actually falling over as she laughed. _

_And he stared at her before sweeping out an arm. A wave of snow responded, washing over her and burying her. But he saw the wisps of reporting out of the corner of his eye and he whirled._

_Just time for her to land a pile of snow in his face as she tackled him, giggling and laughing. "A hundred years too early to get me like that, my lovely shadow!"_

"_You underestimate me." He said swiftly and swept a handful of snow into her face. But she just laughed again and grappled with him, dragging the snow into his hair. Her blonde locks fell around their faces like it was a curtain and then the world became blonde and white and black as they tumbled around and around, her laughter as clear as bells..._

TTTTTTT

Adrian and the Shadow Queen watched as the light finally died down, revealing Armityle slumped back against the obsidian sarcophagus and its chains. (AMLP: 400) "Have you had enough yet?

It took several long moments and sharp, ragged breaths before Armityle pulled himself to his feet, leaning on the sarcophagus. When he spoke, his voice was a malevolent, furious hiss. _"You...damn...insects...I am going to...crush...you!"_

"Funny. You said the same thing earlier when I was beating you and look how it turned. I'm still here and you're still struggling to stand and grasping for what little power you have." The Shadow Queen allowed herself a small smirk. "Still think all of your hate can save you now?"

Armityle ignored her, lumbering back to his space on the duel field even as bits of his shadowy form ribboned off him due to the damage Adrian's attack had inflicted. "_Hate...hate is too small a word, girl...I despise you. Loathe you. Detest you! I am Armityle and...I will...not be denied my vengeance on the gods themselves by a A LITTLE GIRL AND A CAT!"_

He threw back his head and screamed. It might have been a scream of frustration...except screams of frustration didn't cause the temple to shake, didn't cause shockwaves of energy to shove both of his opponents back a yard, didn't cause the shadows to thrash like they were alive and in pain.

TTTTTT

Vladimir had just ripped the last Phantasm Token apart with its own shadow when it hit. The room shook and trembled like it was having an earthquake, pitching him and his siblings to the floor violently.

"What's going on!?" Maria clutched her towel tighter as if protecting her modesty would protect from the source of the disturbance.

"I would conjecture that the enemy Mom and the Librarian are fighting is proving difficult than we first perceived! That or Adrian has pissed her off again!" Leopold lost his balance again as the floor buckled and he could only watch helplessly as his glasses went sliding away.

"Whatever it is, they can stop now!" Melissa had managed to remain upright by clinging to a wall ornament, but only barely. "It's like they woke the devil up!"

TTTTTT

Down below, had the Shadow Queen been able to hear her daughter's comment, she would have acknowledged that it probably wasn't far off.

Armityle's screaming had ceased and he looked to be much calmer. But given his new imposing new appearance, anyone would have been. He had gained nearly a foot in height and his body of shadows was more solid, more powerful looking. His skin was ash-gray save for where dark blue hands and feet and wings, which seemingly pulled straight from Raviel and melded into his new body seamlessly. A jagged mass of blackness was substituted for hair and his eyes were the same.

He held up a clawed hand, marveling as a small spark of blue power arced between his fingers. "Incredible..." His voice was surprisingly light for someone his size, but there was a slight whisper-like quality to it- as if two other voices were speaking alongside him. "I have forgotten the power once feels when possessing a physical body."

"You won't posses it for much longer, I assure you." The Shadow Queen narrowed her eyes at him, subtly dropping the barrier she had had to put up in order to keep the explosion of energy from harming her.

"I'll back her up on that." Adrian's barrier simply shattered apart as he took a step forwards. "I have an issue with ancient evils like you trying to become whole again- you guys cause no end of trouble."

Armityle gave him a chuckle. "You _are_ intelligent to pick up on that so quickly, cat. Yes, I am seeking to regain the pieces of power that I lost so long ago."

"Which is why you invaded my Palace, needing it from an outside source." The Queen spat derisively. "For someone who claims to be a rival to the gods, you're nothing but a parasite to be squashed like one would a mosquito."

"No, I merely needed strong opponents to encourage my power to return." He gave her a bemused look. "But I was beaten once at my 'full power'. If I am to be successful this time around, then I will need to gather a strength beyond 'full power'."

"A way to go beyond your own power and challenge the gods?" Adrian folded his arms. "Do tell."

"In due course, cat." Armityle pointed a clawed finger at the Librarian. "We all must have our secrets, after all, like you've managed to build a deck of some of the most unique and individual cards around."

Adrian just smiled, his tail swishing behind him. "You'd be surprised at what dimensional travel and being a nice guy can net you as rewards."

"Indeed. But now the duel continues...and it is my turn." Armityle drew and held the card out for his opponent's to see. "Treasured Cards of Adversity lets me draw two cards because you have Special Summoned monsters in play and I have no monsters at all."

He drew twice more, giving him a total of fie cards. "Monster Reincarnation lets me discard add to Raviel back to my hand from the graveyard. Next, I activate the spell card Fiend's Sanctuary, generating one Metal Fiend's token to my field and which I will sacrifice to bring out Raviel."

Neither of his opponents ever saw the token as Raviel's massive form tore its way free of the shadows behind Armityle once again. "And now, I will show you the greater power I have sought and acquired." He separated one of his remaining cards from the others, holding it out. A dark, black and gold glow surrounded. "I activate Divine Ascension!"

The card dissolved away into bits of light that scattered and covered Raviel, sinking into his body and he bellowed in what could only be joy, clenching and raising both fists skywards. Above him, the ceiling grew deeper and darker, pitch-black as suddenly lightning surged violently.

The Shadow Queen and Adrian both took a step back to steady themselves as the Temple began to shake and tremble, the obsidian sarcophagus rattling in its chains. Their eyes went wide as Raviel began to grow, gaining nearly quarter of his own height. The blue bone armor he wore darkened to a heavy black, becoming sharper and more angular, serrated bits jutting out in a manner that could be described as wicked.

The violet portions of his body became blood red and much more like exposed muscle and tissue than before. Lightning crashed into his body, but only seemed to further his power. His wings flared outwards, changing to his match his body and almost seemed to drip with shadows and blood. Finally, the horns of his face expanded and grew, twisted together to form a dark skull mask and three-pronged crown. Transformation complete, the new being roared again at the power surging around it.

The Queen shielded herself with both arms as the monster's bellow hurled chips of stone at her, armor rattling slightly at the pressure. "Impossible..."

Adrian hadn't bothered to protect himself, his trenchcoat whipping wildly as he stared with disbelieving eyes at the monster that absolutely towered over Armityle. It was so large, it nearly filled his half of the chamber and the Librarian couldn't even see its legs. "But he did it...I can feel divine power radiating off of that thing..."

A black chuckle slid out between Armityle's lips. "You both act so surprised, as if a god were not like any other being in existence and unable to evolve or grow...all things can change and gain in strength in they desire power enough. And now that I have granted him that power, my Sacred Demon has become a Sacred God."

He held out a hand in a welcoming gesture, aimed towards the behemoth behind him. "Say hello to Raviel, Emperor of Nightmares!"

TTTTTTT

A/N_; Because one cliffhanger wasn't enough!_

_Before people bring it up, I'll head it off here. __Armityle is indeed the actual spirit of the Armityle monster (His origins as such will be revealed in the next Side Story) and as such, the three Sacred Beast cards he uses are the original anime versions with some adjustments to make not horribly broken. (Uria's original effects would make it nearly unstoppable in the right-a free revival just by ditching trap card, plus 1000 for each trap in the graveyard is insane.)_

As Adrian mentioned, his cards are not from this dimension and are why he has all of the Hero branches. However, it is not the deck he uses casually, only bringing it out against opponents like Armityle.

_As an interesting side note, the Terror Villains are a personal project of mine. Like the HERO archetype, they all posses that kind of synergy via their names, but are divided into subgroups by attribute. (There are none for LIGHT.)_

The EARTH group, the one the Queen is using here, are based around the monsters and things you'd find in horror films- Phantom Grasp is the stalker in the dark kind of monster, the one that simply picks you off one by one without you seeing it, the others are the kind of unstoppable monster of classic horror- Frakenstein's Monster, the werewolf, the mummy, etc, etc.

_The other sets are radically different. In example, the FIRE set of Terror Villains are based on the axe-crazy murders and p__sy__chopaths of fiction, the ones who just keep coming and coming and seem to have a superhuman lust for blood and suffering..._

The concept behind the Terror Villains is ultimately run each Attribute in its own group or mix and match them up for variety. The DARK set emphases the latter option, as their effects are specially tailored to unite the others in a deck and it is the set that Doctor Alchemist, the Queen's Deckmaster is a part of...

Deckmasters:

Hero Kid -'Hero's Welcome': The first time you Special Summon a 'Hero' monster each turn, draw one card.

Armityle The Chaos Phantom- 'Descent of Might': During your Main Phase, you may tribute one Fiend-type monster you control Special Summon one 'Raviel, Lord of Phantasms' from your Hand, ignoring the Summoning Conditions.  
'Descent of Fire'- During your Main Phase, you may send one Continuous Trap Card to the Graveyard to Special Summon one 'Uria, Lord of Searing Flames' from your Hand, ignoring the Summoning Conditions.

'Descent of Thunder'- During your Main Phase, you may send one Continuous Spell Card to the Graveyard Special Summon one 'Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder' from your Hand, ignoring the Summoning Conditions.

Created Cards

_Armityle: _

Disciple of Raviel  
DARK  
4 stars  
Fiend/Effect  
1000/0  
Effect: Whenever 'Raviel, Lord of Phantasms' has its ATK increased, increase this card's ATK by the same amount until your opponent's next End Phase.

Disciple of Uria  
FIRE  
4 stars  
Fiend/Effect  
1000/0  
Effect: While in the graveyard, this card is also treated as a Continuous Trap Card. If this card is in your graveyard and you take battle damage, you may place this card in your Spell and Trap Zone as a Continuous Trap Card

Priest of the Sacred Demons  
LIGHT  
6 stars  
Fiend/Effect  
2200/2000  
Effect: If you control two or more monsters that have 'Raviel','Hamon,' or 'Uria' in their names, you may Special Summon this card from your hand. Once per turn, you may reveal one of the following monsters from your hand and activate the appropriate effect  
Raviel, Lord of Phantasms: Special Summon one 'Phantasm Token'.  
Uria, Lord of Searing Flames: Destroy one Spell or Trap card on the field.  
Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder: Until the End Phase of this turn, when this card destroys a monster as a result of battle, inflict 1000 points of damage to your opponent's life points.

Temple of Armityle  
Field Spell Card  
Effect: This card may not be removed from the field. Whenever a 'Phantasm Token' is summon, special summon one 'Phantasm Token.' When a card is destroyed via the effect of 'Uria, Lord of Searing Flames', you may select one Spell or Trap card on the and destroy it. Once per turn, when a monster attacks a Defense Position 'Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder', you may negate that attack and destroy that monster.

Congregation of the Sacred Demons  
Continuous Spell Card  
Effect: Once per turn, you may target a 'Disciple of Hamon', 'Disciple of Uria' or 'Disciple of Raviel' and Special Summon a monster that has the same name as the targeted monster from your deck. During the turn you activate this effect, you may not Normal Summon.

Martyr of the Sacred Demons  
Continuous Trap Card  
Effect: When a face-up 'Disciple of Hamon', 'Disciple of Uria' or 'Disciple of Raviel' is destroyed as a result of battle, you may Special Summon one ''Disciple of Hamon', 'Disciple of Uria' or 'Disciple of Raviel' from your deck. This effect is only applied if you control 'Temple of Armityle.'

Supreme Blaze  
Normal Spell Card  
Effect: Select one face-up 'Uria, Lord of Searing Flames' you control. During this turn, the selected 'Uria, Lord of Searing Flames' may attack all monsters your opponent controls once and deals damage through defense. During the turn you activate this card, only the selected 'Uria, Lord of Searing Flames' may attack.

Shadow Queen

Terror Villain- Lycanthros  
EARTH  
4 stars  
Beast-Warrior/Effect  
1600/1400  
Effect: Once per turn, if this card's Type is Beast-Warrior, you may change it to 'Beast' OR if this card's Type is 'Beast' you may change it to 'Beast-Warrior'.  
If this card is Beast-type, apply the following effect: When this card battles with a monster and does not destroy it, flip a coin. If the results are Heads, activate one 'Full Moon Infection' from your deck.  
If this card is Beast-type, apply the following effect: Once per turn, this card may not be destroyed as a result of a card effect.

Terror Villain- Stitch Man  
EARTH  
4 stars  
Zombie/Effect  
1900/1200  
Effect: Once per turn, if this card's Type is Zombie, you may change it to Beast OR if this card's Type is Beast you may change it to Zombie.

If this card is Zombie-type, apply the following effect: This card may not be destroyed by card effects that do not target or as a result of battle with a monster who's level is lower than this card.  
If this card is Beast-type, apply the following effect: This card's ATK is 2500 and its DEF is 0. This card must attack during each of your turns. This card may not be switched to Defense Position.

Terror Villain- Phantom Grasp  
EARTH  
8 stars  
Insect/Effect  
2800/2200  
Effect: Once per turn, if this card's Type is Insect, you may change it to Beast OR if this card's Type is Beast you may change it to Insect.  
If this card is Insect-type, apply the following effect: Once per turn, you may discard one card from your hand. Banish one face-up monster on the field who's ATK is 2000 or less.  
If this card is Beast-type, apply the following effect: When this card is destroyed, Special Summon two 'Terror Villain Spawn Tokens' (EARTH/2stars/Insect/500/500).

Immortality of the Beast  
Trap Card  
Effect: After activation, equip this card to one face-up 'Terror Villain' monster. The monster equipped with this card may not be destroyed as a result of battle. If the monster equipped with this card would be destroyed a result of a card effect, you may send this card to the graveyard instead.

Rage of the Beast  
Quick-Play Spell Card  
Effect: When your opponent deals damage to your life points, you may activate this card. Select one 'Terror Villain' on the field. Double the selected monsters ATK. The selected monster must attack each of your turns and may not be switched to Defense Mode

Sleeping Terror  
Normal Spell Card  
Effect: Send one 'Terror Villain' from your Deck to your Graveyard. If the sent monster is level 5 or higher, when that monster is Summoned from the Graveyard, increase its ATK by 1000.

Awaken The Terror  
Normal Trap Card  
Effect: Tribute two 'Terror Villain' monsters and Special Summon one 'Terror Villain' monster from your Graveyard. If the monster summoned by this effect is level 7 or higher, draw two cards.


	7. The Golem's Tale

Shadowhasers: Twice-Told Tales  
By 7th Librarian

_A/N: First of all, I want to give a big thank you to Metal Overlord 2.0, who wrote the duel for his chapter. He is currently hard at work on the next chapter of Danse Macabre, so be looking for that soon._

_And as always, dear reader, I hope you enjoy and review. _

TTTTTTT

Adrian casually sipped from his mug of hot chocolate as he weaved his way among the towering shelves of one his library's rooms. His pace was brisk, his coat flapping with every step and his tail swayed in time to each step as he hummed a little tune with a smile on his face.

This cheerful attitude did not fade as he rounded a corner just in time to see a large, manta-ray shaped ship careen towards his building.

Nor did it fade as the ship smashed through the library's front, the massive amounts of rubble, shattered glass and books somehow all missing him.

And the attitude didn't budge as the ship plowed its way across ground for him, still shredding up everything it hit along the way like a giant metal tidal wave As it reached him, he casually took a step back and watched as it finally ground to a horrible, screeching halt an inch from the toes of his boots.

Taking another drink, he lifted his gaze up towards the sleek windows of the cockpit. "So...who hit the Emergency Water Landing Button this time?"

For a moment, there was no one visible in there and then with a painful groan and lurch, a brown-haired, blue-eyed teenage girl in waist-coat appeared over the console. "Ooohhhhh...I thought it would be safe underneath the dashboard..."

"You know that button will always get it at the most inconveint time, no matter where it is, Emily." Adrian took on a bemused expression as a silver-haired head of hair joined Emily's slumping over the control console with a low groan. "And here we have Judy. Out for a joyride, girls?"

"You said to try and make friends with the Shadowchasers..." Emily smiled and gave him a weak chuckle.

"True. I suppose that I should have expected this- two teenage girls, a boring meeting with adults and something with that can fly." Adrian snapped his fingers and the two girls were teleported out of the ship, groaning as they fell another three inches to the floor in front of him.

He watched them roll over, flopping about limply and moaning. "So, Emily Foxblade-Marlowe and Judy LaBaron, what am I going to do with you?"

They gave him weak, upside down smiles. "Don't get mad at us?"

"If I were mad, you would know." The Librarian sat down on a nearby piece of rubble and took another drink. "However, crashing the _Manta_ into a building is hardly something I can excuse."

"Yeah, but we can't really wreck the Library by doing that." Emily pointed out as she sat up and rubbed her head gingerly. "The Library Arcanium exists outside of time and space. The building that's here in this dimension is just a representation of it-you can move it and change its shape at will, Adrian. Heck, just last week, you had it as a _castle. _And yesterday, this wasn't even _here_._" _

"You are correct. Nice to see that my apprentice can keep track of the basics, Emily." Adrian nodded. "And I will repair the building in a suitably Disney-esque fashion later with a wave of my hand. In the meantime..." He reached over and fished around in the rubble before producing a wall clock that had miracuously survived. "Jalal will still be in his conference for the next forty minutes and Mei will not be home for some, either."

"So...then what?" Judy asked as sat up as well, dusting herself off as best she could.

"I'm going to use this as an excuse for story time."

Emily made a face. "That's a worse punishment than just yelling at us and stuff. Do we really have to?"

"Yes, because it will give me time to think up how to explain to Mei so she doesn't murder you both with gratuitous amounts of fire. You know how she protective is of her ship." Adrian pointed at the ship in question. "And I think you did more than scratch the paint."

Emily gulped and paled slightly. "Yeah, a story sounds great!"

"Good. Now then, it was a day like any other, except it wasn't because if it was, there wouldn't be a story. So instead, it was a day that was rather odd..."

TTTTTTT

_The Golem's Tale  
_  
TTTTTTT

The day started oddly enough with a car accident, or rather, the aftermath of one. It was the typical scenario, a little boy wanders onto the road trying to catch a bouncing ball, and around the corner came a speeding car.

What was not typical was that before the car had time to blow its horn, before the boy had time to turn his head and cry out in terror, was the large man in a nice black suit thundering down the sidewalk at a speed that should have been impossible for a man of his stature.

Passerbys heard the car's honk, the screech of brakes applied too late, the crunch of metal and a boy's terrified shriek. From all directions, they came like moths to a flame.

"Are you alright, child?" The big man rumbled. He was kneeling protectively around the boy, one hand outstretched and partially buried in the car's front to halt its momentum.

"Ahhhh..." The boy stared at him, nodding dumbly. "Uh-huh..."

"Good." Delicately picking up the ball the boy had lost, he stood and handed it back to its owner. "Please be more careful in the future. Your parents can buy another ball-they cannot buy another you."

"Yeah, yessir." The boy replied, still nodding his head. "T-thank you."

"You are welcome." The man ran his big hands over the front of his suit to smooth out the wrinkles and then readjusted his sunglasses. He glanced around, taking in the group of pedestrians who were all staring at him and the would-be accident. "Hmmm..."

He glanced over his shoulder, at the slightly caved in front end of the vehicle and the driver staring at him slack-jawed over the steering wheel. "Hmmm..."

Pondering all of the looks for a moment, he snapped his fingers as a thought occurred to him. "Ah, yes. The whole 'pain' thing..." He grasped the wrist of the hand he had used to stop the car with. "Oh, agony! Oh, pain! My wrist feels as if it has been broken, nay, trampled by the hordes of Khan himself and I, Gurren, fear it shall never regain its use! Woe unto me! Suffering and agony! All of the pain!"

Silence filled the area and then somewhere, a cricket chirped three times.

Gurren swept his gaze across his audience, who were staring at him openly. "Hmmmm..."

The cricket chirped again.

They were all still staring when Gurren produced a sphere from his coat and smashed it on the ground, disappearing in a cloud of smoke. And they were all still staring when the cloud was blown away to reveal he had vanished.

TTTTTT

Gurren straightened his tie and hummed to himself as he strode the alleyway. "Saving someone's life is always a good way to start the day. I hope the rest of the day goes as well."

Thanks to a touch of magic and his suit, Gurren looked like an ordinary, stereotypical 'man-in-black' type, being six and a half feet tall, broad in the shoulders and square-jawed. And despite the fact he had stopped a speeding car with one hand and emerged unscathed, he knew his little stunt would be ignored. It was too incredible to believe that a human would be able to do that and they would chalk it up to some more 'rational' explanation.

Even if he had told them, they wouldn't have believed that he was a golem.

To be fair, most Shadowkind had the same reaction when he not only told them he was Shadowchaser. He was hoping that today's case would be a little easier.

Stepping out of the alleyway, he glanced up across the street to his destination.

ALBERT HOON COSMETIC SURGERY

The sign above the door had two gargoyles on either side and one atop. They were rather ugly and Gurren mused to himself that they should frighten away customers, but seemed to be more of mockery given the graffiti that was scrawled all over them.

Carefully ducking his head to avoid the doorjam, he entered the office waiting room. It was small and tidy-a few chairs, a coffee table with a few celebrity magazines scattered about and a potted plant.

The front desk was manned by a young blonde woman, who's name tag identified her as 'Kenzy'. A pair of headphones were blaring out a pop song that Gurren could easily hear and she was tapping her pencil and bobbing her head in time to the beat.

"Excuse me, miss." He rumbled at her, but she did not seem to hear him. "Excuse me..."

"Oh, do come in already!" An irritated voice called from the back. "The fool girl wouldn't hear an elephant stampede through there!"

Gurren made his way past Kenzy and through the door, mildly surprised to see a rather spacious office. A large oak desk was opposite the door and seated at it was a bald, sharp-faced man in a doctor's coat.

"I feel the need to remind you that my services are not cheap and even surgery can only do so much, so keep that mind before you ask about-" He lofted his head from the papers he was studying and stopped as he caught sight of Gurren. A slight frown tugged at his lips. "You're a golem and judging by that mark on your face, a Shadowchaser as well."

"Indeed. I am Gurren, Mister Hoon. I apologize for interrupting your day and that fact I cannot take advantage of your services." Gurren said with a slight bow. "I am here on the matter of an investigation."

The frown became a scowl. "An investigation? What on earth for? All I am doing is providing a service. IF you Shadowchasers think you can harass me just because of my species or lichdom, you've got-

"No one has died, Mister Hoon." Gurren explained. "And while we know what species you are, I assure you that I am not harass you. However, there has been a recent issue with several individuals who have received cosmetic surgery in recent months acting out of the ordinary or found committing crimes that they have no recollection of attempting. All of them have had surgery or the like done to them at various locations."

"And so because I am ithillid, you naturally suspect me."

"Unfortunately, that is the case for many others. It is also because of this that I decided to come here first today. If you are innocent, then a search of your office will prove it so and you be assured that will not trouble you again."

Albert shook his head. "While I appreciate your courtesy, Mister Gurren, I cannot allow this. My clients have a right to their privacy."

"You have my word that anything I uncover about them will remain a secret if it is not relevant to this investigation."

'Your word, hmm?" Albert studied him for a moment. "You do seem to be an honorable fellow. So I shall strike you a bargain. I recently come across a new deck I wish to try out. Duel me and if I win, you leave. Win and not only shall I let you search my office, I will give you whatever aid I can in catching this miscreant."

"A duel it is, then." Gurren nodded in agreement and walked over to the far side of the room. "Your office is big enough for us to do so, Mister Hoon. Is that on purpose?"

"It's size is meant to impress clients, Mister Gurren. The fact that it equates a dueling field is merely conincidental." Albert produced a duel disk from one of his desk drawers and slid it on, walking over to the other side of the room. "I only have the one disk, I'm afraid."

"Quite alright." Gurren held up his left arm and with a flash of light, a duel disk was on his arm. "I tend to break things like this if I carry them around, so dimensional storage is quite convinent."

"So I see." Both of the disks activated and they drew their opening hands. "The first turn is yours, Mister Gurren."

GURREN: 8000 LP ALBERT: 8000 LP

Snapping the top card off his deck Gurren set a monster and one card face down on his disk. "Two cards facedown and that will be all for now. So by all means why don't you show me a little of what this new deck of yours can do."

"Oh in good time Mr. Gurren, in good time. However this particular strategy takes a little time to prepare," Albert said drawing a card. "For now the journey begins with a single step, namely the spell card Road to Paradise."

One of Gurren's sculpted eyebrows creaked lifting at the sight of the strange spell card in Albert's hand. It seemed to depict a panorama of a vast winding stone pathway choked with withered vegetation. "And what does that do exactly?"

"At the moment, it merely allows me to take another copy from my deck," The Alhoon said slipping the spell into his discard slot as a second copy ejected from his duel disk. "But as I said, a journey begins with a single step, and as the road grows more complex, more will be revealed with each copy played."

"Then I'll summon Shore Knight in attack mode," Albert continued placing a monster onto his disk. With a burst of frigid wind a warrior dressed in cerulean colored plate armor appeared, his long black hair still billowing slightly from the harsh winds that preceded his arrival (1400/1200).

'_Now why is it I find myself facing one of the most notorious Beat-down duelists we have on file, yet his opening move amounts to a glorified Gather Your Mind and an Attribute Knight?' _Gurren mused.

"However unlike his more infamous brother Armageddon Knight, I don't meet the requirements to use Shore Knight's effect just yet, so instead I'll have him attack your set monster!" Shore Knight charged forward drawing his blade and bringing it down on Gurren's set card, the image of a bulky yellowish boulder with limbs and eyes appearing before the blade smashed it to rubble.

"That was Koaki Meiru Boulder, and when it's destroyed I can take either Iron Core of Koaki Meiru, or simply a monster with Koaki Meiru in its name from my deck, in this case I choose the latter," Gurren said taking a new card from his deck and adding it to his hand.

"Oh? You would be so cliché as to hide behind another creature of stone for defense Mr. Gurren? I thought there was a bit more depth to you than that," Albert took two more cards from his hand and set them facedown behind Shore Knight. "Either way my turn is complete."

"Then it's my move." Gurren said quickly making a draw before slapping another monster onto his disk. "I summon Koa'ki Meiru Wall in attack mode!" With a low growl a creature best described as a stone wall with stubby arms, legs and a misshapen head appeared on the field, a heavy chain swinging from its front as it took a ponderous step forward (1900/1200).

"Attack Shore Knight with Advancing Wall of Doom!" The golem commanded as the mobile wall began to charge right at the aquatic warrior, as though to catch it between its body and the wall behind it and reduce the monster to a paste. Not the most subtle attack but with something that size was it really worth trying to be?

"Again, you telegraph too much of your intentions Mr. Gurren, I activate Zero Gravity to reverse the battle positions of both Shore Knight and Koa'ki Meiru Wall." The Alhoon said pressing a button on his disk. An invisible wave of energy rippled out as both monsters took to the air, the knight's hair and cloak billowing out while the lumbering golem waved its stubby limbs clumsily.

Then, as quickly as flicking a light switch, the gravity came back on as both monsters landed in defense and attack mode respectively. Actually only Shore Knight's three point crouch upon his feet and free hand could really be called a landing. The impact Wall made crashing face down on the floor was more akin to a piano being dropped off a ten story building.

"While your monster attempts to pick itself up off the floor I should explain how Shore Knight works," Albert explained taking his deck from his disk and rifling through it. "Whenever it changes battle position I can send one Water monster from my deck to the graveyard." Finding the one he wanted he discarded it quickly before plugging the deck back in as the disk automatically shuffled it.

'_And with no way to get rid of it, he'll be able to use that effect again on his next turn, though I still can't figure out what he's up to. Even if he's running a single attribute deck there are dozens of different Water based strategies available. Although somehow Road to Paradise doesn't seem like it fits any water build I'm familiar with, so even that's an educated guess at best.'_

Finally the golem sighed setting another facedown card. "I end my turn, which means I must now reveal a Rock type monster in my hand to keep Koa'ki Meiru in play," He said turning a card around and revealing it to be Gogogo Giant. "Fortunately I have at least one in my hand so my monster is safe."

"From destroying itself perhaps, but hardly in battle," Albert said drawing a card. "I move Shore Knight into attack mode allowing me to discard another Water attribute monster from my deck," Once more he fanned out his deck, plucked a card to send to the discard slot, then plugged it back in as Shore Knight stood up and drew his blade.

"Now destroy Koa'ki Meiru Wall!" Albert commanded his knight charging with sword raised high as Gurren's monster struggled to get up. Sword and stone came together with a mighty crash but when the dust settled the Wall was seemingly intact despite a large crack in its hide where Shore Knight's blade had struck. "Eh?"

"That would be my facedown card Stone Tell Mr. Hoon," Gurren said giving a small smile and wagging a finger. "Now not only is my monster safe from being destroyed this turn I draw one card," He said adding a fifth card to his hand. "So as you can see, my monster was actually quite safe on both counts."

Though he lacked the facial features that would convey emotion in other creatures both living AND dead, the narrowing of his filmy eyes suggested the Alhoon was less than pleased with this. "Very well Mr. Gurren, I'll simply conclude my turn with a monster in defense mode."

"Well I don't know about you Mr. Hoon but all this stalling is starting to get dreadfully boring," Gurren said drawing a sixth card. "So let's spice things up a bit! I play Foolish Burial which, like Shore Knight, allows me to discard a monster from my deck, albeit one of ANY attribute," Gurren said discarding a monster. "Then I summon Gogogo Giant in attack mode." With a rumble an even larger stone construct burst up from the ground next to Koa'ki Meiru Wall, living up to its name not only in height but sheer bulky mass, with thick powerful limbs layered in dull bronze armor (2000/0).

Then to Albert's surprise the giant began to tear into the ground at its feet ripping up chunks of the floor the size of automobiles. "Care to explain why your monster is currently _tearing my office apart?_" The Alhoon growled his tentacles twitching in agitation.

"You _are _remembering this is being conducted via holograms right?" Gurren said tilting his head to one side at his opponent's reaction. "In any case, when Gogogo Giant is summoned I can special summon Gogogo Golem from my graveyard in defense mode." Another golem, this one egg shaped with huge armored fists crawled out of the hole in the floor and crouched down its palms held out like shields (1800/1500).

"Now, technically since Gogogo Giant has used this effect he'd move to defense mode," Gurren explained as both Gogogo Giant and Koa'ki Meiru Wall vanished creating a swirling starry void behind him. "But that's a moot point since I'm using him and my Wall to build the Overlay Network!" The void grew sending a whirlwind through the office scattering papers before a new form emerged from the depths.

It was a figure seemingly sculpted from pure white marble in the musculature of a man, bringing to mind Elemental Hero Terra Firma. It wore a spherical helmet which hid most of its face save two piercing green eyes (2600/1900). "Exceed Summon, Gem Knight Pearl!"

"First Koa'ki Meiru, then Gogogo, now Gem Knights?" Albert mused having seemed to calm down a bit. "Aside from all being Rock monsters your deck seems a bit of an archetypal chimera Mr. Gurren, I hope you're not expecting to have the same luck the first King of Games had with making a working strategy out of such a smattering of random cards."

"Random? Perish the thought!" Gurren said wagging a finger. "I assure you there's a method to my madness, but in between making the right draws it helps to splash in a few cards now and then to give a deck some flexibility. Now Pearl's one of a small number of Exceed monsters who have no effects to use their Overlay Units to activate, which is why this next card was likely designed specifically to benefit them, Oni Gami Combo!"

Images of both Gogogo Giant and Koa'ki Meiru Wall appeared behind the Gem Knight before they dissolved into a crimson aura which seemed to infuse Pearl his muscles bulging and his eyes glowing bright red. With a battle cry he charged fists moving so quickly he seemed to sprout four more arms in a six limbed barrage worthy of an Asura!

Shore Knight's armor began to dent and collapse from the barrage while Albert's facedown monster was quickly revealed to be a Sangan, before a blow to its face turned all three of its eyes into X's like a cartoon as both monsters abruptly shattered.

"I'll need to remember to thank Tsubasa for giving me a copy of Pearl to use," Gurren said smiling in satisfaction as the Gem Knight returned to his side of the field. "The man runs so many different strategies his Extra deck has more variety then most card shops!"

"Yes, yes, the bond you Shadowchasers share is nothing short of heartwarming," Albert said taking another monster from his deck with Sangan's effect. "Now if there's anything else you'd like to accomplish this turn aside from drawing first blood…?"

"Sadly no," Gurren admitted with a shake of his head. "But with Pearl on the offensive and Gogogo Golem's effect allowing it to resist destruction via battle while in defense position I'd like to think there's no harm in calling it a turn for now."

GURREN: 8000 LP ALBERT: 6800 LP

'_Enjoy the advantage while you still have it golem,' _Albert thought drawing a fifth card from his deck. _'Because in two turns my true strategy will begin, and then not a single card in your deck will be able to save you!' _"You made a mistake in getting rid of Koa'ki Meiru Wall Mr. Gurren, otherwise I would have been more hesitant to activate my second copy of Road to Paradise,"

'_Actually considering I had no monsters left in my hand it was either use it for an Exceed Summon or let it self-destruct at the end of my last turn, but why is it so important to keep using that spell?' _Gurren wondered. So far Albert's strategy seemed more content to wall him off with traps and monsters while relying on deck thinning spells and self-discarding effects for…well something obviously but _what?_

"Next I play another rare spell known as Stage Select," The Alhoon continued as a card showing a computer screen cycling through maps on a video game screen appeared. "In exchange for shuffling your deck, I can now take any card from my deck and place it on top," He made a move to approach Gurren's side of the field when the golem held up a hand.

"With all due respect Mr. Hoon, I'd like to shuffle my own deck if it's all the same," He tapped a button on his duel disk activating the Auto-Shuffler feature once more. "Need I remind you you're still under investigation? Not to mention Jonouchi Katsuya found himself in a quite a predicament back in Battle City when he let his deck fall into the wrong hands however briefly."

"If you're suggesting I intended to plant a Parasite Paracide into your deck I assure you I have neither the motivation nor the means to benefit from such an underhanded strategy," Albert countered taking a card from his deck and placing it on top as Stage Select vanished. "Not when I have a far more potent _legitimate_ one at my disposal."

"Now my next monster is a bit situational but potentially very useful, it's called Gallis the Star Beast. First I reveal it in my hand," He turned the card so Gurren could see the monster. "Then I send the top card from my deck to the graveyard, if it's a monster then I not only special summon Gallis to the field, but you take damage equal to the discarded monster's level times two hundred."

"Whereas if it isn't a monster Gallis is destroyed before it ever hits the field," Gurren added frowning a little. "But thanks to Stage Select you know exactly what card is on top of your deck because you set it there yourself."

"Precisely Mr. Gurren, which means three things now happen. One, the top card of my deck is discarded," He sent a card depicting a powerful looking armored figure to his discard slot. "Gallis is special summoned to the field," There was a shrill cry as an armored Griffon with spiked purple and red wings coated in spiked plates appeared crouching in defense mode. "And because the monster I discarded was level seven, you take fourteen hundred points of damage!"

From several different directions bolts of fierce lightning lashed out crackling across Gurren's body with angry snaps and pops…only to fizzle out with no apparent effect on the golem aside from a few wisps of smoke here and there. "Um…I suppose the typical reaction to this would be…ouch?" Gurren said idly scratching at a smoking spot on his form.

"Hmph, I suppose that's another advantage to being a golem," The Alhoon said with a sigh. "But whether or not you actually experience the pain of taking damage, if your Life Points fall to zero you will lose regardless. My last action this turn shall be to use Lightning Crash to take a Thunder type monster from my deck, provided I do not summon it this turn."

GURREN: 6600 LP ALBERT: 6800 LP

The golem quickly drew a fourth card from his deck and looked over the field. _'Alright, he's got one monster in defense mode and a facedown card. There's always the off chance it's something nasty, but if he's bluffing and I summon another monster, I can really do some damage this turn!' _

"I switch Gogogo Golem to attack mode and then summon a personal favorite of mine, Ko'aki Meiru Prototype!" Gurren said playing a card. At first glance the 'monster' the golem had just summoned resembled the nerve center of the Ko'aki Meiru archetype, Iron Core of…well, Ko'aki Meiru. However with a series of clicks and whirrs it unfolded into a four legged robot with tentacles waving about from its back and a single glowing yellow lens for an eye (1800/1800).

"Of course whether or not I'll get a chance to take advantage of his abilities in this duel remains to be seen. But in the meantime he still has a respectable number of attack points, and I'll use every last one of them to destroy your Star Beast!"

The Prototype's tendrils lashed out and constricted around Gallis, who only had time to give a brief screech before it was crushed into pixels. "And now I'll attack you directly with Gem Knight Pearl and Gogogo Golem!" Gurren said thrusting a hand forward as both his monsters charged in to strike.

"Activate Depth Amulet! Now I can discard a card to negate each of your attacks!" Two cards slid into his graveyard and the trap card unleashed a wave of force that sent Gurren's monsters skidding back to his side of the field.

"Depth Amulet? Not exactly the most insidious trap card in the game," Gurren said tilting his head slightly. "Wouldn't Negate Attack have done the job just as well?"

"Actually Mr. Gurren you've already fallen into my _true _trap, Depth Amulet was just a convenient means to protect myself from damage at the same time," Albert said ominously as he discarded a card.

Gurren gave his opponent an odd look. _'Now what on Earth does _that _mean?' _Giving the remaining cards in his hand a glance he frowned setting one behind Gem Knight Pearl leaving him with two left in hand. _'Whatever it is I doubt I'm going to like it…' _He nodded to let Albert know his turn was complete.

Albert wasted no time in drawing a third card. "I should thank you Mr. Gurren, outside of a few dry runs this will be the first time I've been able to perform this combo. Now that everything is in place I activate my final copy of Road to Paradise!" He played the spell and this time an ominous rumbling began to shake the room.

"What? But you can only have three copies of a card in your deck, and both the other copies are now in your graveyard!" Gurren said his eyes widening in surprise as the rumblings grew worse. A powerful energy was beginning to fill the air like static electricity.

The Alhoon gave a chuckle that, if the golem had possessed any hairs to begin with, would have left them standing on end. "Oh you poor naïve fool, Road to Paradise can only obtain its true power under those very conditions. As the final copy played thus far, its effect now allows me to activate a certain field spell from my hand, graveyard or in this case, deck."

A card ejected from his disk being caught between his pointer and middle finger before Albert slid it into his disk. "Behold the power of one of the rarest cards you'll ever lay eyes on, _GATE TO PARADISE!" _The rumblings finally reached their peak as an enormous ornate gateway rose up behind the Al'hoon, made of a strange shimmering metal with the engraving of an enormous lush tree with a mammoth keyhole entangled in the roots at its base.

"Well, it's certainly…a gate," Gurren admitted craning his head to look up at the mammoth doorway (which reminded him rather unpleasantly of the kind of sturdy design that had been put into the great wall separating King Kong from the natives of Skull Island in both versions of the aptly named film). "But what exactly is it a gate TO? There are countless variations of 'paradise' differing from culture to culture."

"A valid question, but if it's all the same to you I'd prefer to avoid the mistake nearly every bloody person you Shadowchasers duel makes in revealing a card's secrets all at once. Suffice to say you'll have enough on your hands dealing with the one who _guards _this gate without wondering what lies beyond it."

"But I'm getting ahead of myself; first we have the matter of your monsters to deal with. Rather than crash through them one by one I'll simply destroy them all with Dark Hole!"

A large black sphere appeared in the center of the field which began to produce an overwhelming gravitational pull on everything around it. Chunks were torn out of the walls and ceiling, and all three of Gurren's monsters were drawn in before they were crushed and shattered into pixels, leaving the arena choked with rubble.

"Now the last card in my hand is Magic Planter. By ridding myself of my continuous trap card," The trap shuddered and then melted into nothingness. "I draw twice," He snapped the top two cards from his deck.

"Now then, you wanted to see the power of Gate to Paradise? Allow me to demonstrate," Albert said as a card ejected from his deck and was caught between his pointer finger and thumb before he slapped it onto the tray. All at once a blinding torrent of elemental energy burst up in front of the Al'hoon in a nexus of ice, lightning and wind. A hulking shape emerged onto the field but before he could get a clear look he heard Albert give another command. "DIRECT ATTACK!"

A gargantuan energy blast made of that same convergence of raw elemental energy began to barrel down on the golem vaporizing everything in its path so quickly he barely had time to react. "Activate Draining Shield!" Gurren shouted as a transparent dome formed around him seconds before the blast struck full force, the shield cracking and shuddering but somehow managed to hold as the golem's life points began to climb.

Then as the blast began to dissipate Gurren noticed two things he had not seen through the rubble: Albert holding up a copy of Double or Nothing, and the unmistakable form of Gate Guardian (3750/3400) charging up a second blast of energy for a direct attack with _seventy five hundred points of damage. _

A few seconds later the golem came crashing through the door and through the adjacent wall leaving a hole resembling a giant gingerbread man entire din went unnoticed by Kenzy, still sitting at her desk with her headphones playing full blast bobbing her head to the beat. Behind her Gurren slowly staggered out of the wall stumbling slightly as he creaked to the side and put his outstretched arm through another wall trying to keep from falling over.

Pulling it out with a burst of plaster and concrete, the golem checked his duel disk to see if it had been damaged, and then trudged back through the splintered remains of the door to Albert's office adjusting his suit like nothing had happened.

"Ah Mr. Gurren I was wondering how long it would take for you to dig your way out of my dry wall, I'd like to point out I'll be expecting your employer to pay what it will cost to refurbish my office at the rate your dismantling it," Albert said standing in the shadow of the Gate Guardian.

"And he'll be happy to provide it I assure you, but in the meantime you'll forgive me if I find myself a bit more interested in how you just summoned one of the most notorious difficult to summon monsters in the game without so much as a tribute, token or life point payment."

"Impressive isn't it? Now before you get your hopes up and think I'm going to reveal all the secrets of such a laborious effort, let me stop that train of thought here and now. I'm trying to defend my right to privacy and continue my work unmolested of any further interference, so what do I have to gain by robbing myself of the element of surprise?"

"I _will _however offer you this to mull over: do you know what Gate Guardian's purpose is? Why it was created to begin with?"

Gurren gave Albert an odd look before his gaze lowered as he rubbed his chin with a dull grind of stone upon stone. "Well, to be honest I always thought it was simply a neutral entity, summoned to guard over things deemed worth defending regardless of whether it was for good or ill. I mean yes it's a Dark attribute monster, but I could go on for hours about how that attribute has produced some of the most valiant and heroic monsters to ever exist in the history of the game."

"Yes and I'll thank you to avoid doing so," Albert interjected with a slight edge to his voice. "But the truth is, Mr. Gurren, there was a very specific gateway in mind when the Guardian was formed from the elements of water, thunder, and wind, _this _one to be precise," He gestured to the massive doorway in front of which both he and his monster were standing.

"And again, exactly what lies beyond this gateway that would require such a powerful monster to protect?" Gurren asked curious in spite of himself.

"A force to rival the gods Mr. Gurren, a monster so terrible I have yet to even include it in this deck, history has shown that taking such dangerous cards lightly can lead to calamity, and if I were to be so reckless as to use such power in a casual duel, it would be a far more serious a crime than the one you have accused me of already."

"Huh, I'm not sure whether to be relieved or disappointed," Gurren said rubbing the back of his head.

"Oh I assure you the power of Gate to Paradise will make Gate Guardian more than enough of a threat to deal with. In the meantime however I will conclude my turn with a facedown card," He said setting it behind the considerable bulk of his Gate Guardian.

GURREN: 2750 LP ALBERT: 6800 LP

Drawing the top card from his deck, Gurren gave Albert's field spell a long hard look before tapping a button on his duel disk causing two cards to eject from his graveyard slot. "I banish Gogogo Golem and Gogogo Giant to summon one of the cornerstones of many a Rock deck: Gaia Plate the Earth Giant!" Tucking them into his pocket Gurren took a step back as the ground shook once more, a mound of solid stone heaving its way up before forming the rough outline of a humanoid figure, albeit one devoid of a proper head. It slammed its fists together with a roar like an avalanche (2800/1000).

"There's an old saying Mr. Hoon 'Nothing ventured, nothing gained,'. I'll force you to reveal the secrets of your field spell even if I have to come at you with everything I have. Now Gaia Plate will use its effect to cut the attack score of any monster it battles in half!" The lumbering giant growled and drew back a fist winding it up and them sending it straight at the Guardian's face.

"Here's another old saying Mr. Gurren 'Look before you leap'!" Albert said activating his facedown card. "Because Gate Guardian is of a higher level, Class System protects it from Gaia Plate's effect!" The lowest part of Gate Guardian, Suijin, unleashed a pressurized maelstrom of water from its maw sweeping the stone giant away and dashing it to pieces.

"…Honestly I was expecting to keep it on the field for a _bit _longer than that," Gurren sighed setting a monster and a facedown card on his field. "Still even a failed assault has its benefits, that's one less layer of protection for your monster to rely on next time I draw a power-house, until then it's your move."

GURREN: 1800 LP ALBERT: 6800 LP

"You know Mr. Gurren some people would commend you for remaining optimistic in such a dire situation, but personally I just find it annoying," Albert said drawing a card. "Gate Guardian, crush his set monster!" The great deity roared and unleashed a mixed blast of lightning wind and ice once more.

"Activate facedown, Compulsory Evacuation Device!" Gurren said tapping his duel disk as his trap went off. A large metal cylinder rose up around Gate Guardian before with a tremendous boom, went off like a cannon blowing a hole in the roof as the great beast vanished into the atmosphere with a glimmer.

"…Would it be in poor taste to make a Team Rocket reference?" Gurren asked idly scratching his cheek as Gate Guardian's card returned to Albert's hand. "The opportunity seems ideal, but somehow you don't strike me as much of a fan of cartoons so it would likely go right over your head."

Albert's right eye twitched slightly as a small shower of plaster landed on his shoulder. "Mr. Gurren, you have officially been promoted from a distraction to a _nuisance_. Its time you understood just how out of your depth you truly are," He snapped as a card jutted from his deck. Slapping it onto the tray there was a roar as Gate Guardian appeared yet again.

"Here's the bottom line Mr. Gurren: so long as the three original components of Gate Guardian are in the graveyard Gate to Paradise allows me to disregard Gate Guardian's summoning restrictions and summon it from my hand, deck, graveyard, or even the banished pile. There is literally not a _single _card in this game that can permanently defeat Gate Guardian so long as it draws power from this gateway. You could use the Winged Dragon of Ra's Phoenix Mode and all you'd accomplish is wasting a thousand life points for a cheap pyrotechnic display."

'_It never ceases to amaze me how much braver people are about insulting the Egyptian God cards now that they're gone,' _Gurren thought his brow furrowing with a dull creak. _'But from what I've seen so far Albert might have a point. This strategy seems similar to the fabled Ancient City/Ancient Dragon combo, except vastly improved upon both in versatility and focusing on a monster with greater attack and defense scores.' _

"Anyway, to finish my turn, I'll set one card facedown." Gurren said taking the only card in his hand aside from Gate Guardian and setting it in the shadow of the one now on the field.

'_Alright, this is likely going to help him as much as it will help me, but at this point I need a few more resources in order to figure out a way out of this mess'. _Gurren thought drawing a card and then flipping up his monster into face up attack position. An antique vase appeared shaking as a formless black phantom with one bulging bloodshot eye snaked out with a cackle (700/600). "Morphing Jar, need I say more?"

"Not without insulting my intelligence by implying this if my first time dealing with that giggling piece of crockery," Albert said both duelists discarding what few cards they had left and then immediately drawing five more from their decks. When both players saw what they had drawn they gave each other a guarded glance as though already planning their next move.

"I'll set one card facedown and sacrifice Morphing Jar," Gurren said as the phantom leered vanishing into thin air. "And summon Granmarg the Rock Monarch!" With a dull groan a bulky creature rose up behind the golem that, while not even half the size of Gate Guardian, was still quite intimidating with the elaborate plate armor and oversized forearms which it brought together with a ground shaking thud (2400/1200).

"You might already know his effect now allows me to destroy a set card on the field, but what may surprise you is that I choose to destroy the card I just set myself!" Turning Granmarg wound up a fist and brought it straight down on Gurren's set card smashing it to pieces. From the broken remains a whirlwind began to kick up in the center of the room.

"This sets off the effect of Wild Tornado, because it was destroyed by a card effect, I can destroy another card on the field!" The whirlwind picked up power as it began to tear towards the great stone gateway ripping chunks out of the ground as it moved. Digging its feet into the ground, bracing itself as it prepared to weather the storm, only for it and Albert to both exclaim in surprise as the tornado went _past _the guardian.

"Your Guardian may be invincible so long as Gate to Paradise is on the field, so I'll just have to tear down your precious field spell first!" Gurren said as the tornado howled obscuring his sight of Albert's field as it raged for a few seconds and then slowly began to die down. But when the dust began to settle there wasn't so much as a scratch made on the gateway. "What in the…it's still intact?"

"A slightly more intelligent attempt to turn the tide in your favor I'll admit Mr. Gurren, but ultimately no less futile," Albert said dusting off his clothes. "You see the relationship Gate Guardian has with this field spell is symbiotic in nature. In return for allowing its guardian to resurrect as many times as needed, Gate to Paradise draws power from its protector allowing it to resist being destroyed once per turn."

'_Damn, I'm starting to run out of ideas here. Nearly every strategy I can think of to get rid of that beast would only last until the next opportunity Albert has to use his field spell.' _Gurren thought as he looked over his remaining three cards. "I play Shallow Grave, now we both take one monster from our graveyard and set it face-down on the field," Albert gave him an odd look but said nothing as a facedown monster appeared on each of their fields. "Then I'll set one card and end my turn."

Albert drew again, his hand now at a full six in all. "I'll play The Warrior Returning Alive to retrieve the copy of Gate Guardian your Morphing Jar forced me to discard," Albert said as the card jutted from his discard slot. Seeing the expression on the golem's face Albert gave a soft chuckle.

"I imagine you're expecting me to use my field spell to summon this Gate Guardian as well Mr. Gurren? Well as novel an idea as it would be to be the first person in history to have two copies of Gate Guardian on the field at once, my field spell specifically forbids me from having more than one copy in play at any time."

"Then why bother bringing it back? For that matter, why use more than one copy of Gate Guardian in your deck at all? Considering the Gate allows you to summon it from your hand _or _deck, your just clogging your deck with an extra monster you can't even use."

"True it does seem unusual," Albert admitted taking another card from his hand. "But unlike the nameless Rare Hunter who was foolish enough to use three copies of all five pieces of Exodia in the same deck, there is at least one tangible benefit for using multiple copies of the Gate Guardian cards, namely _THIS!" _

Albert discarded Gate Guardian, a second Sanga of Thunder, and a Spirit Reaper as a massive form flew down from beyond the gateway casting a shadow over the entire field. It was a hideous three headed dragon with gunmetal grey scales and no visible eyes on any of its head. They each gave a terrible shriek at a slightly different pitch making a frightful din (6300/0).

"Montage Dragon, a terrible name in my opinion, but a very useful card to run in a deck using so many high level monsters, and speaking of which I'll flip summon the monster you allowed me to revive using The Shallow Grave, my second copy of Suijin." The set card vanished and was replaced by the cerulean armored beast that served as Gate Guardian's legs (2500/2400).

"I have to admit I enjoyed this far more than I expected to Mr. Gurren, but sadly I _do _have other appointments to keep so it's time we bring this duel to a close. First Montage Dragon will destroy Granmarg, then Suijin will dispose of your set monster, and finally one last direct attack from Gate Guardian will decimate your life points!" The three headed dragon reared back a sphere of pure energy forming in each mouth before they all snapped forward at once letting loose with three equally large beams of destructive power.

"You want to talk about being foolish Albert; you should consider how dangerous it can be to ignore an opponent's facedown card, especially when it's Mirror Force!" The golem said pressing a button as a barrier of reflective crystal rose up around him and his monster absorbing Montage Dragon's attack and glowing more radiant by the second. Finally the energy reached critical mass as the barrier shattered sending out a shockwave that obliterated all three of Albert's monsters.

Shielding his face with one arm, Albert made a 'tsk' sound as he swept the pixels aside that had, a second ago, been his monsters. "A minor setback, nothing more! First I move to my second main phase and revive my original Gate Guardian," The ground shook as the great beast appeared for what had to have been the third time so far in the duel.

"Then I'll set two cards and finally play the spell card Surprise Attack From Beyond! This turns my end phase into an additional battle phase for a monster that was special summoned this turn, so now Gate Guardian can finish what Montage Dragon started and annihilate Granmarg the Rock Monarch!"

A vortex of ice, lightning and wind formed between Gate Guardian's claws before it threw out its hand sending it hurtling towards the Rock Monarch, slamming into its chest making the giant groan in pain cracks spreading from its chest before it shattered pelting Gurren with the broken remains of its body.

GURREN: 350 LP ALBERT: 6800 LP

"You escaped defeat that round but sooner or later you'll either run out of cards or life points, frankly the only thing you can do now is stall for time in my opinion." Albert said folding his arms as Gurren drew a card. The golem ignored this and looked over what little he had on hand.

'_I hate to say it but he's right, even if I use the card I just drew Gate Guardian will still come back on Albert's next turn, and with my life points as low as they are, just one burn effect or attack will wipe me out. I only have one chance left,'_

"I play Back to Square One, in exchange for discarding a card from my hand, I can choose one monster on the field and send it to the top of its owners deck," With a growl of what almost sounded like annoyance Gate Guardian vanished its card flying off Albert's duel disk before he caught it and reluctantly placed it atop his deck.

"Then I flip my facedown monster, time for an encore performance Morphing Jar!" Gurren said sweeping his arm to the side as the haunted jar was flipped up the spirit within giving a cackle. When both duelists drew their new cards Gurren noticed one of them and paused.

'_Wait…it couldn't be _that _simple could it?' _Glancing up Albert tapped a button on his duel disk bringing up the card text for Gate to Paradise carefully reading it over. Blinking he re-read the text to make sure he hadn't made a mistake before a small grin appeared on his face. _'Well I'll be…' _

"Alright Albert, get ready, here's where things get interesting! I summon Block Golem to the field," The monster that appeared was composed entirely of brightly colored building blocks. Its body consisted of a huge cubical head with no facial features save a pair of glowing yellow eyes, and almost comically small limbs, the arms ending in drill bits which it lifted up giving a menacing growl (1000/1500).

"When my graveyard only has monsters of the Earth attribute, I can tribute Block Golem to summon two level four or lower Rock types from my graveyard, and I have quite the selection thanks to using Morphing Jar." The colorful monster broke down into its component building blocks which swirled around Gurren's field before two forms leapt out and landed on either side of him.

At first glance it would have been easy to mistake the monsters Gurren had just summoned as being Alpha and Gamma; part of the Magnet Warrior set that had made their debut in Yugi's deck during Battle City. But while they were clearly inspired by those monsters, these were far less cartoonish in build.

The first one, clearly based on Alpha the Magnet Warrior, was nearly six feet tall its armor meant to resemble those of a traditional samurai, its magnetic horns curling upwards into sharp points and the Roman letter Alpha emblazoned on each of the four armor plates covering its shoulders and thighs glowing a faint blue(1700/1400).

The second monster, bearing some resemblance to Gamma the Magnet Warrior, was just as fearsome looking. Its body was taller and sleeker in build and its wings almost twice the size of the original Gamma's. There was a distinct beak shaped faceplate beneath its glowing eyes and both forearms were equipped with three two foot long hooked claws. On each of its wings the Roman letter Gamma was emblazoned in a dull red hue (1800/1500).

"Albert, allow me to introduce the newest additions to my deck, Alpha and Gamma, the Magna Knights," Upon hearing their names being called Alpha drew a katana making a war cry, while Gamma raked its talons together with the angry shriek of a bird. "The latest in a growing set of first generation monsters reformatted to compete in the more advanced builds of today's game.

Judging by the way Gamma hung its head and sighed, it was obvious that hadn't been the most obvious feature it was hoping to get noticed, Alpha reaching over and giving it comrade a sympathetic pat on the shoulder.

"They are also far deadlier then their original forms, even though neither of them have access to their abilities the turn they are summoned using Block Golem's effect. Next turn however? Well that's a different story, but for now I'll set two cards facedown and call it quits," The golem set two of his remaining cards behind each Magna Knight.

Albert drew another card a little harder then was necessary. He had meant it when he had said his patience was wearing thin, and despite being given the opportunity to show off his new strategy, the fact that thus far Gurren had managed to avoid losing wasn't helping his mood much either. "Let's end this Gurren, I summon Gate Guardian from my hand using Gate to Paradise!" The monolithic beast rose up spreading its arms and howling, seemingly reflecting its master's anger.

"And it will be for the _last _time Mr. Hoon! By special summoning a monster you triggered my face down card, Demise of the Land!" Gurren said the quick play spell rising up as a card jutted from his deck. Again, it was hard to discern much emotion from the Al'hoon but the way his filmed eyes bulged suggested either shock or horror.

"It seems you don't need to have this one's effect explained to you either eh Albert? Your field spell may be powerful, but it's hardly the Seal of Orichalcos, it has no defense against being replaced by another field spell, in this case Catapult Zone." As he played the new field spell a horn blew in the distance. The sound of wood creaking and ropes being cut came from the forest behind Albert followed by a series of whistling noises.

Then, huge boulders launched by catapult, smashing came plummeting down crashing against the great doorway in an endless barrage of debris. At first the gate stood firm, both due to its own resilience and the Gate Guardian's rage as it blasted several boulders out of the sky with bolts of lightning, shards of ice, and whirlwinds.

But slowly cracks began to appear in the surface of the gate, blinding light leaking through the widening fissures as the attack continued, the fiercest quake of all shaking Albert's office as the entire gateway finally came crumbling down. Then, as dust clouded the field, Gurren caught a glimpse of…_something _looming beyond the broken gateway, something so vast in size it should have been impossible for it to fit in the room even if it had been the size of a football stadium.

Then, after staring down at the golem with burning yellow eyes, the massive figure vanished in a flick of vast wings and the whisper of a roar that seemed to echo throughout all of creation…and then nothing, just the broken remains of Gate to Paradise, as well as an enraged Gate Guardian and an equally enraged Albert.

"This…changes…_nothing!_" Albert snarled his facial tentacles writhing in every direction. "I still have Gate Guardian, and your Morphing Jar is wide open to attack, _crush it!_" Gathering the three elements embodying its form between its claws, Gate Guardian launched another sphere of destructive elemental energy.

"Trying to hit me with overflow damage because I took down your field spell Albert? Now you're just being petty," Gurren said wagging a finger as Alpha the Magna Knight leapt in front of the cowering Morphing Jar and brandished his blade. "I use Alpha's effect to redirect the attack towards himself, which activates my trap card, Magnet Force-Repulsion Charge!"

Holding the blade out in both hands the Magna Knight began to give off waves of blue energy, the broken pieces of the gate shimmering with the same aura as they began to lift up into the air. "I should mention that the Magna Knights are member of the sub-type of Magnet monsters known as 'Plus'. Incidentally Repulsion Charge has two effects which activate depending on the number of Plus monsters I control, first, because I control at least one your attack is negated."

As Alpha's eyes flashed, the rubble came together forming a floating barricade that intercepted the blast in an explosion that rocked the entire building. "Then, because I also have Gamma, another Plus monster, I can now select one card on the field and destroy it!"

Out of the flames came Alpha sword held low to the ground and running straight towards Gate Guardian. Bellowing in defiance the titan rained down bolts of lightning only to have the Magna Knight dodge each one with a quick sideways roll never losing momentum until finally the guardian drew back a fist and threw a punch with the intent of crushing Alpha flat.

Rather than dodge, Alpha swung his sword with all his might as the great fist came hurtling down, somehow managing to block the punch and carve a deep gash in the guardian's knuckles. Stabbing his blade into the hand, Alpha grabbed the fist and strained as, incredibly, the entire beast was lifted up and into the air in a judo flip.

Spinning and crouching, Alpha leapt after the falling goliath, landing on an outstretched arm and racing up towards Gate Guardian's head, brandishing his katana Alpha leapt up and gave a great cry before bringing his blade down and splitting the monster clean in half from head to foot!

The entire process had taken no less than five seconds and left Albert's arms slumped at his sides, staring in shock as the severed halves of one of the most infamous monsters in the game came apart in midair. Landing on his feet, Alpha scraped his katana against his forearm before quickly sheathing it, at which point the two halves of Gate Guardian came crashing down and burst into pixels.

"And don't think I didn't read the text of Gate to Paradise, Albert. With all three Roads to Paradise banished, you have no way of activating Gate so unless you manage to summon all three of the original components the old fashioned way, Gate Guardian has fallen for the final time. " Gurren finished.

Albert stared at him angrily, one of his cheek muscles twitching furiously and Gurren surmised had been able to see beyond the magic that was hiding Albert's true appearance, he would have seen the illithid's tentacles thrashing in anger. "You, Mr. Gurren, have made me rather _incensed. _I find...that I do no like being so...at all."

He grabbed a card from his hand and slid it into his disk. "Dark Element lets me pay half of my life points because I have a Gate Guardian in my graveyard to summon out Dark Guardian!" The spell card appeared and glowed, spitting forth a titanic spider-like creature with the upper torsos of a man instead of a regular head and the entire thing was covered in black armor. It bellowed, seemingly as angry as its master while it brandished a twin-headed axe. (3800/3800)

GURREN: 350 ALBERT: 3400

A card appeared behind the monster and then Albert gestured at Gurren, his eyes still glaring angrily at him.

"I would apologize for you upsetting you, but I get the impression that you'd find my words wasteful." Gurren commented and drew for his turn. "I set one monster face-down and switch both of my knights to defense mode." A brown-backed card appeared even as both of his monsters knelt and crossed their arms in front of themselves. "I will also set one card face-down and end my turn."

"I would gloat about my inevitable victory, but given how uncannily lucky you have been in this duel, I shall forgo tempting fate and move straight into the part where I crush you." Albert said sharply. "I activate my set card, Meteor Rain! Now it doesn't matter if your monsters are in defense mode or not or if your field spell can protect them from dying, because you'll take the damage from the overflow and _lose!_"

He pointed at Alpha. "Dark Guardian! Crush the one who defeated your counterpart! _Axe Crusher!_" The monster roared and stampeded towards its target, weapon held high.

"Because your Guardian's power exceeds two thousand, I am able to activate my trap card-Nutrient Z. Now I gain four thousand life points before your attack hits!" Gurren glowed as his trap card's effect activated, watching as the Dark Guardian's attack hit. Alpha staggered as its katana creaked under the force. "And as you side, my field spell lets me send a Rock from my deck to my graveyard to prevent another monster from being destroyed in battle."

GURREN: 350-4350-1950 ALBERT: 3400

"I don't know why I'm surprised you dodged at this point." Albert hissed and slid a card from his hand into disk. "I will set this face-down and end my turn."

"I draw." Gurren did so and pointed at his set monster, which flipped up and transformed into a skeletal dinosaur with a bony, cue-ball like head with spines around the base. "Fossil Dyna Pachcephalo destroys all special summoned monsters when its flipped face-up!" (1200/1300)

"What? No-!" Albert swore in a language Gurren didn't recognize, but assumed was very bad as his Dark Gurdian screeched in sudden pain, clutching at its chest as its weapon clattered to the ground. A second later, it burst into pixels while Alpha and Gamma simply eroded into dust. "Curse you, having that wretch of a monster in your deck!"

He growled at it as the Fossil charged across the field for him, his cheek muscle twitching again. "I didn't think I'd have to use this card with Dark Guardian in play, but to rid myself of that nuisance is something I'll enjoy! The trap card Destruction Explosion activates when you destroy a level ten or higher monster on my field! All other cards on your field are destroyed!"

True to its name, the trap card exploded violently, the flames incinerating the advancing dinosaur and then the Catapult Zone as well, leaving the Shadowchaser with nothing on his field but embers. "Now what will you do? You will run out of tricks to dodge long before I run out of firepower, Mister Gurren!"

"Indeed." Gurren nodded in agreement and held up a spell car. "So perhaps it is time to bring out the big guns myself, via my Fossil Fusion spell card. By banishing a level four or lower Rock-type monster-such as my Block Golem- and a level eight or higher monster from your graveyard- like one of your Gate Guardians, I can fuse them together to summon out Fossil Dragon Skullgios!" Bones flew out of ground, swirling about as they linked and snapped together to form a Tyrannosaurus skeleton. Despite the lack of the necessary bits of flesh, it roared to announce its completion. (3500/0)

A card materialized in front of Gurren and he nodded again. "I believe that this monster is more than enough firepower for now. I end my turn."

Albert drew, a snarl crossing his face. "You think to match me in a game of strength, Mister Gurren? I _am_ a _master_ of power in all its myriad forms and you have brought your ramshackle pile of bones far too late to make any difference. I will tear right through it as if it were paper!" Three cards were swiftly sent from his hand to the graveyard and with a triple roar, the massive blue and white form of a Montage Dragon appeared in front of him and was already charging up flames in its mouths. "Now crush that pathetic monster!" (3800/0)

"As I said, Skullgios was enough firepower, Mister Hoon, as unlike you, I do not believe in excessive force. I activate another card I've borrowed from my teammate Tsubasa- the trap card Breakthrough Skill!" The trap flipped up and Montage Dragon suddenly froze and Albert's eyes widened as its attack score began to plummet. "This card negates your monster's effect, making it zero and since you declared an attack on my monster..."

Albert could only watch as Skullgios stomped across the field, snaring all three necks of his Montage Dragon in one bite. With a jerk of its head, it tore the heads off and used a leg to claw at the now useless body of the monster. It was still stomping away at it as the holograms of the duel faded and left the two duelists in the slightly-wrecked office.

GURREN: 1950 ALBERT: 0

The man looked to be trembling with rage, his fists clenching as the muscle in his cheek began to dance wildly, his eyes flashing...and then he took a deep breath. Letting it out slowly, he relaxed. "Very well, Mister Gurren. I know when I've lost. The right to search my office is yours."

"Thank you, Mister Hoon. It was a well-fought duel and you played excellently." Gurren bowed slightly in respect. "However, I will not need to search your office."

"...what?" Albert stared at him, aghast. "Are you saying that you merely challenged me for your own entertainment!?"

"Not at all. I had every intention of defeating you and searching the premise when I arrived. However..." Gurren paused as series of tones sounded and Albert stared as a the golem fished into his interior suit pocket, producing a cell phone. The device looking positively small in his massive hands, Gurren flipped it open and studied it for a moment. Nodding, he flipped it shut and returned it to his pocket. "That text was confirmation that I was waiting for. A warrant has just been issued for your arrest, Albert Hoon."

"Arrest?" Albert scowled furiously at him. "On what grounds!?"

"As I mentioned when I arrived, we are following up on a lead. Several lesser-known celebrities have not only all risen in status recently, but have also made large donations to several charities. Charities we have found give the money through a series of dummy corporations. Nearly a hundred million dollars has been lost through these false charities." Gurren explained patiently.

"While that is tragic, it is hardly grounds to accuse me of-"

"All of the celebrities have one other thing in common besides their loss of money and recent rising stars. All of them had plastic surgery performed on them recently. Surgery performed by you. A Shadowkind aid to one of them reported to us that her employer had been acting differently since the surgery and even people who had hated said employer found themselves liking her almost without question." Gurren's voice was still calm, but strong. "Almost like it was magic."

"Again, it is not a crime to provide a service nor is it grounds to-"

"One of the celebrities was a Sensitive, Albert." The Shadowchaser watched Albert's eyes widen slowly with dawning comprehension. "When we questioned her, she said while she was being put under anathesia, she saw through your spell and described an alhoon quite accurately. Moreover, an examination by an Incantifer found that a very subtle glamour spell had been placed all of your patients."

He pointed a finger at the surgeon's laptop. "Also, we received a warrant to examine the contents of you computer. While we were dueling, a Shadowjack was getting in and pulling out everything they could. I am certain will find more evidence than we need in there."

Gurren pulled out his capture jewel and took a step forwards. "Please stand down and be arrested, Mister Hoon. Fleeing will only worsen your already bad situation."

Albert stared at him for a long moment and then his face twisted in a snarl as he snapped out his hand. A small fireball leapt from his palm, more than tripling in size as it smashed into Gurren and sent him staggering a couple of heavy steps.

"And attacking me just made it worse than running would have." Gurren simply brushed the fire off his body, sighing as the ash of his suit came with it. "The clothes are always the first to suffer..."

If Albert was surprised that his fireball had barely done that to his enemy, he didn't show it. Instead, he swung out his hand and pointed it at his desk. It rose up off the ground and glowed blue before he swept his arm towards Gurren and the piece of furniture followed the motion, except several times faster.

The desk smashed into Gurren hard, actually shoving him back along the floor as it kept pushing at him with the same amount of force. He shielded himself with an arm and then dug his far foot into the floor, using it a brace to halt his slid and at the same, deliver a powerful punch to the wooden object.

Even as it shattered into bits and pieces, he could see Albert finishing charging up a glittering ball of blue magic that was definitely an ice spell. Albert certainly wasn't an idiot-most elemental spells would hardly hurt a golem and while ice spells couldn't do much more damage than most, they could certainly freeze his joints and keep him from moving. And judging by the size of the sphere, Albert was hoping to freeze him completely solid.

Gurren charged, the office shaking as his feet pounded across the floor. He snatched up the largest piece of the desk as he crossed the distance at the same time Albert unleashed the spell. Holding the desk piece in front of him, he grunted as it felt the spell smash into it and slow him a step. But it held even as ice coated it.

It didn't hold together, however, as he smashed it into Albert. The alhoon made a sickening squelching sound that followed by a sharp 'crack!' as the force of the blow picked him up off his feet and threw him through the wall.

The Shadowchaser didn't waste any time as he stormed after Albert. To his surprise, the lich had not only picked himself from the crater in the wall he had made, but was sprinting towards the golem at top speed. Gurren barely had time to brace himself as Albert shoulder-check him hard, shoving the golem back and digging furrows in his office.

"I...may not be as massive as you, Mister Gurren, but...I think..." Albert was cut off as Gurren wrapped in him a tight bearhug, squeeze so hard the alhoon's body groaned in protest.

Then Albert smashed his head into Gurren's heard enough to leave Gurren reeling, dropping him and staggering a step. "You'll find my strength and durability are more than you bargained for!" With that, he leapt at Gurren with a fist cocked back to strike.

Gurren merely side-stepped the lunging blow, one massive fist snaring Albert's outstretched hand and wrenching it behind his back sharply while an expertly timed knee slammed into his spent and nearly bent Albert in two backwards. "But your skills are lacking, Mister Hoon. A punch after a straight lunge is a fool's trick."

Hoon gave him an upside down grin. "And your move would have been effect if I could feel pain or had a nervous system." He spoke a word and Gurren's head snapped back as if someone had uppercutted it hard. "As it is, my magic shall supplement my lack of-"

He never got the next few words out as Gurren hoisted him in the air and slammed him down in a powerful backbreaker move. The attack barely had time to register before the golem spun on his heel and hurled the smaller being away like a discus.

Albert felt himself smash through yet another office wall, bounce and careen across the pavement of the street and come sliding to a halt against a fire hydrant. Despite his lack of organs or nerves, he still managed to groan slightly and used the hydrant as a support while he hauled himself into standing position.

"I trust the point has been made clear, Mister Hoon." Gurren shouldered his way though the wall's new door easily. "Your psionics do not affect me, your magic has the same issue and despite your surprising strength, you cannot best me in physical combat."

"I acknowledge this. If it were not for the reinforcements I have cast on my body, you have shattered it with the first hit." Albert sneered as best he could and to Gurren's surprise, whistled a few notes sharply "Thankfully, I am nothing if not prepared."

Gurren only had time to see the shadow stretch over him before he started to move aside. But the whatever it was smashed him to hard, driving him headfirst into the pavement. With a growl, he rolled and felt the thing dislodge itself from his back. He got to his feet, smacking away a second attacker as he did so.

Once he got to his feet, it was easy to see what had attacked him. The three gargoyles that had been perched around the entrance way to Albert's office had come to life. Their stone wings could not let them fly, but given they were nearly Gurren's size and had claws that looked like that could cut through steel, he doubted that would have any need to.

They charged at him recklessly and Gurren dropped into a Muy Thai stance- right left slightly forwards and his arms up in front of his chest. The gargoyles obviously weren't expecting him to be able to move as fast as he did, for the first kick slammed into into the front one's chest and sent it sailing up and back a dozen feet in the air.

The other two swept around him to either side, trying to get into his blind spots. Gurren stepped towards one, an elbow strike catching it in the head and sending it crash away. As the third jumped for him, the same arm lashed forwards in a lightning-punch that caught it square in the center.

His eyes widened as he saw the creature had driven its claws into his stone arm, negating the force of his blow. It leered at him and gave him a laugh that sounded like gravel being poured into metal and swung its around on his arm deftly, slashing and leaving a jagged furrow in his shoulder.

Gurren grunted, acknowledging the damage while at the same determining it wasn't a deep enough blow affect that arm's structural integrity. He slammed the gargoyle into the ground, heard it's own body crack and drew back his arm to deliver a punch to reduce its head to dust.

But the other two gargoyles had returned to the fight, driving their claws into his other arm and halting his downward motion while the one he had pined was gripping the ground below to keep him from pulling back up. He strained against them, but his awkward position left him little leverage to use.

"You say that my psionics do not affect you, Mister Gurren..." Footsteps moved in front of him and he lifted his head to see a grinning aloon in front of him. "But let us find out what a point blank Mind Blast does."

Most psionic attacks were intangible, directly affecting the victim's brain or nervous system. But a Mind Blast was a feared technique that the illithids had mastered eons ago- it took all their considerable mental power and turned into a cone-shaped blast of concussive force.

With the more powerful illithids, such as Albert, comparing it to being hit by a freight train was doing a disservice to the attack.

Gurren roared as hit him, shoving him back foot by foot even as he lumbered forwards against it. The gargoyles were scattered and a second after they did, he felt his damaged shoulder crack all the way. The arm went flying, torn to pebbles by the psychic forces pounding it.

Albert's eyes went wide as Gurren bellowed again, putting one tedious footstep in front of the other to advance against the force hammering him. Then his face twisted in a snarl and he spoke the words of arcane power he had learned, thrusting out one hand and a visible sphere of compacted air shot forth.

It smashed into Gurren and broke his tenacious hold on the ground. The golem sailed through the air and landed on a parked car, reducing it to so much broken glass and bent and twisted metal. He groaned and sat up, a few cracks over his body and cradling his head in his one remaining hand.

"You are..a persistant nuisance, Mister Gurren." Albert said, trying not to show how using his spell while using the Mind Blast had drained him- the two schools didn't mix well, even for an undead being like himself. Then he smiled as the three gargoyles surged towards the Shadowcahser.

"However, you are also going to be not much more than filler for my zen garden when my gargoyles are done with-" The smile dropped off his face as Gurren's hand suddenly flashed out, snaring the closest gargoyle by the head and heaving it off the ground. The construct flailed madly, slashing at his arm, but Gurren ignored it. Instead, his eyes glowed briefly and the gargoyle was dissolved into the golem as the spirit that had been animating it fled. "...what was that?"

"I can absorb stone and concrete to repair myself." A new arm exploded out of his damaged shoulder, though gray in color to match the source of the material. At the same time, it also filled in the cracks he had recently received. He flexed the new appendage and rolled that shoulder. "Top quality granite...you do go all out, don't you, Mister Hoon?"

"Let's see you pick yourself together when you're nothing but a fine powder on the wind!" Albert seethed and held out his hand. A fireball formed around it and doubled in size quickly as his two remaining gargoyles bared their claws and tensed into crouches.

Then the two gargoyles exploded with fire, becoming nothing more than chunks of stone. At the same time, Albert felt something powerful explode against his back and send him staggering forwards. He spun around, catching sight of a shadowed figure standing in an alleyway and whipped the fireball in their direction.

To his surprise, the fireball hit but as it did, the figure seemed to warp and become nothing than a ragged mess of darkness. The mass skipped and danced around the flames before bounding out of the alley and mockingly weaving its away around the alhoon. His blows slid through it ineffectively and then it slipped away towards a shadowed part of the street.

As it swirled together and regained a humanoid shape, he fired a psionic attack with all the force he could spare at it. It was powerful enough to send any being with a brain into screaming convulsions, but the shadow-thing was unaffected as it resolved into a platinum-haired woman dressed in combat gear and wearing a tattered, ragged cloak.

Then she opened her eyes and smiled at him and he hissed as he saw ruby eyes and fangs. "Blood-drinker! Abomination! _Vampire!" _

"Yes.' Her voice was strong, with a sharp French accent. She bowed to him politely. "I am a teammate of Gurren's, Fayte Nyte. Owner of the _Blue Blood_ nightclub, Nytestone Incoprorated, wife of Tsukihime Nyte and Shadowchaser."

"A twisted perversion of true power, a species beaten by beings who are food and labor." Albert spat at her in disgust. "And just as my mental prowess is of no use against you, I assure that your skill with magic and the like is of no use against my power."

"You are probably correct. And because you are in the sunlight, hand-to-hand is hardly an option, either." Fayte's hand emerged from underneath her cloak, revealing to be holding a silver handgun that had half again the size of a standard one. Written on the side in golden, stylized letters was the word '_Tempest._ She aimed it at him, finger on the trigger. "Fortunately, I have a solution to those problems."

"A gun? Don't make me laugh, vampire." Albert said with a sneer. "Something like that could have barely harmed me when I was live and now that I am not, you would be foolish to-"

She pulled the trigger twice and he found himself flying across the street, wreathed in fire.

"...what?" He gasped out flatly and stared at her, surprise overwhelming the fact he had taken two strong hits. Then she fired again and his head snapped back, cratering the pavement.

"Among my comrades, I have a nickname- Money Shot. It is not into reference to my excellent aim, but rather my ammunition." Fayte produced a bullet out from underneath her cloak and held it up between thumb and forefinger. It looked ordinary, save for the tip. Instead of a standard metal, it was completely made up ruby gemstone and seemed to glitter with light. "Gemstones can be enchanted and crafted, thus it is possible to forge them into bullets with the power and kick of a high-end fire spell."

The bullet dissappeared back into her cloak and _Tempest_ was leveled at Albert again. "However, given that each shot is roughly five thousand dollars worth of quality gemstone, they are indeed 'money shots'."

"Very impressive..." Albert got back to his feet, glaring. "But I'm tired of this and I have appointments elsewhere to keep." He spoke a word of magic...and nothing happened.

He started and then spoke it again, achieving the same result it. Worried flitted across his features and then his eyes and body began to glow with multicolored light...only for it to fade and the worry to become panic. "What have you done?!"

"We set up a two-mile wide dimensional lock for this area during our duel. That means no portals, teleportation or psychoportation." Gurren loomed over the lich, who jumped. "Also, you forgot about me."

Albert barely had time to turn around before Gurren's precise blows shattered his arms and legs. A final blow slammed into his face and sent him sprawling onto the pavement yet again.

Fayte raised delicate eyebrow at this. "...did you just knock an undead being unconscious?"

"Yes." Gurren dusted himself off. "Thank you for the assistance."

"You are welcome. The rest of the team will be here shortly-they were out of range to avoid his psionic abilities."

"A wise precaution."

"Hey! Excuse me!"

Both Shadowchasers turned to see Kenzy standing in the doorway of the ruined office, blaring headphones down around her neck, hands on her hips and a look of irritation that only a teenager could give. "Could you keep the talking down a notch? I can't hear my music"

TTTTTT

"_WHAT HAPPENED TO MY SHIP!?" _

Emily and Judy both jumped at the angry voice, having been rather caught up in Adrian's story. The Librarian's apprentice paled several shades and slowly turned around face the speaker.

Mei was a good inch taller than her husband, a willowy twig of woman with waist-length blonde hair and blue eyes. Under ordinary circumstances, the sweater and jeans she was wearing would have made her look like any other British citizen.

However, most other British citizens were not on fire.

This is was not an exaggeration in the slightest. Mei was literally surrounded by an aura of blazing flames and her eyes were much the same. She seethed as she stared at the _Manta_ buried in the building, fire licking the air around her. Then everyone save Adrian jumped as her head snapped around to lock onto the culprit.

"_EMILY!"_ She roared and the apprentice yelped in terror as the woman began to advance on her slowly.

"Now, Mei...please...it was just a short spin and we moved the button and...and...and..." Emily squeaked and gave up trying to explain, running for her life down an aisle.

Adrian watched Mei stomp after her like a Terminator, not caring as the surrounding books ignited as she passed them by, and then glanced over to Judy. The youth was staring at the scene with wide, surprised eyes. "Learn from this, young lady. Never assume that she won't find out if you damage her ship. She will always know."

Judy just nodded weakly, jumping as an explosion rocked the building, followed by a wave of flames. "And..and...you married her?"

"She gives excellent ear rubs."

TTTTTTT

_A/N:_ _That was fun, wasn't it? Tune in next time, ya'll. _

_A quick note on Albert's deck choice. The cards for it are not ones you can find in a card store- the deck was originally created by a I2 contest winner who later used it to become Pro League Champion for a time. He eventually retired early to keep his record good and about ten years later, allowed for I2 to reprint some of his cards as part of a 'Champions of Dueling' special pack. Only about twenty complete sets of his cards were produced and highly valued by collector's due to their intense rarity. Albert only showed off a handful of the cards, because he simply could not afford the others._

_However, the one card the former Champion did not allow to be reprinted was the card he had never been seen using- the monster that lies behind the Gate of Paradise. There are rumors abound about it, with some claiming its a secret God Card and others suggesting its just a myth. But the only way to find out would be the hard way..._

Secret Life of Characters #4: Gurren

"_I assure you, attacking me will result in only two hits. I hitting you and you hitting the floor. Please reconsider your choices."_

The world of the Shadowkind is no stranger to illegal games and blood sports and one of the more frequent indulgences by otherwise good citizens is the underground golem fighting ring. Much like Robot Wars, golem fighting basically involves crafting and animating a golem, tricking it out however you can and sending it out to hit the other guy's golem until someone loses an arm...and a head...and a leg...and a torso. While not strictly illegal (since golems are constructs and thus, not recognized by the Treaty save for the Arcane Golem branch), the sport is frowned upon given its rather violent nature and the fact that if one of those ticked golems somehow runs amuck, someone is going to get turned into a red smear.

The underground golem ring, however, takes this up a notch by pitting flesh-and-blood warriors against said tricked out golems. The risk great, the reward greater and the adoration of the crowd even more. But crippling injuries are common, death is rumored to hang out in the stands with a box of nachos and your audience is full of those who like to help themselves to your winnings.

Gurren was one such competitor, owned by one Lucius Dagger. Even Lucius didn't know how or where Gurren had been constructed or how he had been given sentience, but it was enough that Gurren was able to outsmart and destroy the construct golems and that's what mattered.

One night, however, Gurren was pitted against an old man. Despite his excellent physique for his age, Gurren knew that the man was only human and at this advanced age, a good blow could very well kill him. And too often, his massive strength had caused crippling injuries to his flesh-and-blood opponents without his meaning to do so. So instead of fighting this human, he decided he would simply stand there and let the human tire himself out trying to hurt his stone body.

This plan did not go so well when the human shattered one of his arms with a simple kick.

Gurren quickly lost the fight. Afterwards, he ignored Lucius' screaming disowning of him and approached his opponent, asking how he could done beaten hm without any magic or amor or weapons. The man explained that he had been studying martial arts all of his life, in particular Muy Thai. Intrigued, Gurren asked if it was possible for someone like him to learn martial arts.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

Gurren is now a certified Muy Thai master. How he eventually joined the Shadowchasers is known only to him and the man who recruited him- Jalal himself. But he has proven to be a valuable asset to the team with his immense strength and durability. Perpetually dressed in his trademark black suit and known for his strong and kind method of dealing with people, he is a welcome sight in Backwater wherever trouble stirs. And even when it doesn't-he teaches part time at a local dojo when not on duty and the children are always thrilled when he and the other Shadowchasers come to visit or teach.

Beyond his sentience, Gurren is unique amongst golems due to his ability to absorb stone or concrete in order to repair himself-even if the material is part of another construct. During his tenure as a Shadowchaser, he has been destroyed several times. However, a small chunk of his body is always placed atop a high-quality boulder at the Shadowchaser's base-if he is ever destroyed, the piece simply absorbs the boulder and reconstructs him.

_Deck_: Gurren, unlike his teammates, uses a deck that some would consider stereotypical for a golem to use- a Rock deck. But Gurren doesn't mind, claiming that he simply uses Rock monsters because they present a challenge- the pool of Rock monsters isn't that large compared to the other types and most of them defensive cards, so he has to mix-and-match to get the best he can. Recently, he has accquired Fossil Fusion and some of the resulting Fusions, as well as taken an interest in the Magnet monsters, which also received some support in the last set of cards.

_Origins_: Gurren, like all of the Backwater team, exists because I wanted to do something different. Unlike the others, however, I am pretty playing up the 'Gentle Giant' routine with him to the hilt. It's a character type I haven't messed with before and given how crazy the rest of the members are, a voice of reason doesn't hurt, either.

Created Cards

Gurren:

Alpha The Magna Knight  
EARTH  
4 stars  
Rock/Plus  
1700/1400  
Effect: If a face-up 'Plus' monster you control is selected as an attack target, you may make this monster the target of the attack instead. If this you control a face-up 'Minus' monster, increase this card's ATK and DEF by 300.

Gamma The Magna Knight  
EARTH  
4 stars  
Rock/Plus  
1800/1500  
Effect: If a face-up 'Plus' monster you control is selected as the target for a card effect, you may make this monster the target of that effect instead. If you control a face-up 'Minus' monster, increase this cards ATK and DEF by 300.

Magnet Force- Repulsion Charge  
Normal Trap Card  
Effect: Activate when your opponent declares an attack. Activate the following effect(s) depending on the number of face-up Attack Position 'Plus' monsters you control.  
1: Negate the attack  
2: Destroy one card on the field.  
3: Add one 'Plus' or 'Minus' monster from your deck to your hand.

Albert:

Road To Paradise  
Normal Spell Card  
Effect: Add one 'Road To Paradise' from your Deck to your Hand. You may only activate one 'Road To Paradise' per turn. If there are two 'Road To Paradise' in your graveyard when you activate this card, you may use the following effect instead: Activate one 'Gate to Paradise' from your Hand, Deck or Graveyard.

Gate to Paradise  
Field Spell Card  
Effect: Once per turn, if you control a face-up 'Gate Guardian', this card is not destroyed. If this card was activated by the effect of 'Road To Paradise', apply the following effect: Once per turn, if you have 'Kazejin', 'Suijin' and 'Sanga of Thunder' in your Graveyard, you may Special Summon one 'Gate Guardian' from your Hand, Deck, Graveyard or Banished Pile, ignoring the Summoning Conditions. You may only control one face-up 'Gate Guardian'.


	8. The Vampire's Tale

Shadowchasers: Twice-Told Tales  
By 7th Librarian

A/N: _Wow, a story that is actually plot relevant to my upcoming proper fic. Pay close attention __and remember, all your questions will be answered eventually..._

TTTTTT

The Shadowchaser leader settled back into the comfy confines of desk chair, basking in the warmth of the crackling fire that was intense enough to light the entirety of the office. Behind them, a magical window that was linked to an exterior window gave the impression that snow was falling just outside the interior room. "I want to know, is all."

"You really sure?" Violet eyes peered through stands of silver hair, the sharp red and white trenchcoat draped over the back of the Librarian's chair. Dressed in a simple black button-up shirt with ruffles, they almost looked overdressed for the office's austere nature. "There is a credo on the back of your card that warns against things like this, you know."

"I do know. Just call me curious, my friend."

A hand pulled a still-steaming cup of hot chocolate from the tray on the desk. "Curious, huh? I'd say that you're more interested in playing 'What If' about yourself and this is a chance so see what might have been."

"Okay, you have me there. But who doesn't wonder 'What if?' about themselves from time to time? And to see one of those 'what if' questions play out is a rare chance indeed." A smile. "You can make it my Christmas present, if you want."

The Librarian laughed a bit. "Hard to buy for someone who has anything, anyway and I have far too many of those kinds of people on my list." There was a pause to take a drink of the hot chocolate. "Alright, then."

A wave of the hand and a large crystal ball appeared on the desk between them. "Behold the Viewing Globe!"

"...just how long have you been waiting to use that particular line?"

"Long enough." A finger snap and the globe filled with fog. "Now, then, you want a glimpse of one of the many possibilities your life could have taken? Then let me tell you a story..."

The fog within the globe swirled and then parted to reveal an image...

TTTTTT

_The Vampire's Tale_

TTTTTT

Rapid, heel-wearing feet drummed like machine-gun fire on the tiles as their owner darted down the corridor. "Are the directors all assembled?"

"Aye, milady."

"Good. Then this meeting will be short and swift."

"A vain hope, milady. The directors are a rather stubborn bunch, especially when they've sunk their fangs into something."

"It takes all of them assembled in a meeting hall before they dare to call me in for a meeting concerning me, Uton. I'd call them more cowards than stubborn-they're only making a move because they are confident it will somehow tip things in their favor."

"And will it, milady?"

"No." She flipped dark locks over her shoulder, using the other hand to readjust the tie of her business suit at the same time. "All the same-is my surprise prepared, Uton?"

"Aye, milady." Uton, dressed in a crisp gray suit to match his boss, produced a manila folder from inside his jacket and passed it to her as they made their way up the stairwell. "These are the conditions that we're going to have to accommodate in exchange for it, unfortunately."

She flipped it open and scanned the sheet inside with an annoyed expression. "I and my bride need to make an appearance at the _Blue Blood._ Figures- he'd go for that kind of thing, since he's loaning me what I need for my surprise."

"We do not have to accept, milady." Uton told her as they made their way up a second flight and started down a corridor. "If such a proposition bothers you."

"No. I want this mess over and done with as swiftly as possible. I am tired of having my choices questioned and under suspect by the board." Ruby eyes gleamed darkly as she stormed through a pair of double doors. "Gentlemen, a pleasure to see you all."

"Miss Fayte Nyte." Four members of her board were seated at a horseshoe table that, she noted with annoyance, was arrayed so that they were facing the doorway she had just entered. Behind them, were three great screens housing the images of the board members who could not be physically present.

And intoning her full name like it was a key to her summons was the figure in the center screen- Polmacrias, a Incantifer. "You have responded to our request for a meeting promptly. Thank you. Now our proceedings may begin."

"Don't speak to me like I'm on trial, Polmacrias." Fayte said curtly, the strong French accent she possessed doing little to make the irritation she was feeling. Her black hair was almost lustrous in the half-darkness of the room. "You and the board here are treading a very dangerous line and being rather insulting to demand a meeting from me like this."

"As the Board of Directions for Nytestone Incorporated, our primary concern is the company and its future. That includes the mental health and stability of its CEO and founder, Miss Fayte Nyte." Polmacrias said easily, though thanks to his deep tone of voice, it was if an avalanche was trying to be as quiet as possible.

"It's 'Mrs. Nyte' now. I am married." Fayte informed him and folded her arms across her ample chest. "And the Board has no discretion or power over my personal life and choices."

"We feel otherwise." Talfa, a young elf in white and tan robes and actually seated at the table interjected quietly. Despite his relative youth, his handsome face did little to hide the cunning and ruthlessness he possessed. "The fact that your new wife is a succubi is-"

"My wife is a succubus of no small skill, a Shadowchaser of no small talent and courage and a woman of far better quality than the lot of you taken together times ten." Fayte's voice was sharp and cold.

"...while we personally have no qualm in your choice of bride, Nyte, others might." Talfa said after a short hesitation, obviously trying a different tack. "The fact she is a succubi will cause many of our customers and suppliers to question their dealings with us, suspecting our ranks are infested with minions of Hell and even that you are under control by an outside agency. We-"

"If people are stupid enough to consider the fact two long-standing decorated members of the Shadowchasers getting married enough to cause some kind of problem, they're obviously too foolish to be worth dealing with in the first place."

"Regardless-"

"Talfa," Fayte interrupted, "there is no 'regardless'. As evidenced by its name, Nytestone Incorporated is a company built from the ground up by my own hands, and I have personally worked on the security systems of many of our clients. If they do not trust me to give my heart and my hand in marriage to someone worthwhile, then they did not trust us enough for the relationship to be a profitable one in the first place."

A few of the board members grumbled. Only Polmacrias spoke up in response. "It seems you do not understand your position at the moment, Miss-" he paused. "_Mrs._ Nyte. If you continue to push against the wishes of your board in this way, we will be forced to consider... _alternate_ possibilities, in order to ensure the well-being of yourself and the company. While none of us present have any personal objections to her, your bride still represents a significant risk to the trust it has taken decades to build with our clients, and puts every single one of us in danger- and we must consider what is best for the company first. I am sure that if your wife is as noble as you believe her to be, she would agree with this assessment."

To his shock, Fayte responded with a grin- an expression which the board knew only too well, and which meant only one thing.

'Gotcha'.

"The fact that you mentioned my wife amuses me, Polmacrias," Fayte replied, checking her watch. "If I am correct we should be able to ask her opinion on these proceedings in three... two... one..." She turned her head to the doorway. "Good evening, _cherie_."

The board turned in unison- they had been so focused on their CEO that nobody had noticed the new occupant of the room. Leaning against the wall was a very curvaceous woman in a _very_ revealing dress. A long, black whip-like tail with a little triangle as the point swished lazily around her legs and wings that were somewhere between the 'cute' and 'real flight' size were spread out luxuriously as she stretched slightly.

The board members stared at her for a short moment and the physically present ones exchanged glances before Talfa spoke up. "This is a private meeting. We will ask that you leave."

"As my wife, she lays claim to my stakes in the company as well. She stays," Fayte retorted. "Tsuki, I'm glad you could make it. My board of directors believes that if we do not reconsider our union, I will be considered a risk to the good name of the company and they will be forced to consider 'alternate possibilities' if we do not separate or make our union secret. Your thoughts?"

Tsukihime clicked her tongue, examining the board of directors, scrutinizing each one in turn. "My Fayte told me about all of you, but it seems she left some crucial details out. She neglected to inform me that her board was made of up of jackals."

The board was up in arms, Polmacrias furious. "Director! This is an outrage, after so many years of faithful service- are you going to stand there and listen to this without comment?"

"After implying that marrying the woman I love is evidence of my mental instability?" Fayte made a great show of being lost in thought, then shook her head. "Why no, I cannot think of any reason why I should stay silent." She turned to Tsukihime with rather crisp smirk on her face. "Please, carry on."

Tsukihime strode in front of the board, revealing a large stack of papers in her hands. "These documents are the company charter and account records of Nytestone Incorporated- the charter has remained the same since my wife founded this company, minus a few minor revisions as its scope expanded. One thing which has remained constant, however, is this: The Board of Nytestone Incorporated holds no power, under any circumstances, to either over-rule the decisions of the CEO or to remove her from her position. You are allowed to complain all you like, but the fact of the matter is that you have no leg to stand on in calling this meeting and you know it. Really, I'm shocked that out of all the attempts at a power-grab you could have made, you chose such a transparent one, Mr... what was it, Talfa?"

Talfa blanched. "This is no such thing! I have gathered the support of the board, of Polmacrias-"

"Polmacrias is an Incantifer. I was born in hell." Tsukihime clicked her tongue again. "Of course he distrusts me, it's only natural. And of course it was easy enough for you to convince the board to back you- all you would need do is attempt to sweeten the pot for them. You, on the other hand, are the one who stands to gain the most. You and Polmacrias are the most prominent members of this company besides my wife, and you are the second-highest shareholder. Or were before..." Tsukihime turned back to Fayte. "Did the transfer go over okay?"

"Completely." Fayte smiled serenely.

"Until shortly before this meeting, then," Tsukihime continued, "When Fayte's shares of the company were transferred from her ownership to a _joint _account, shared by me. The two of us now jointly own a controlling share of this company, in other words."

Talfa's face began to show evidence of his frustration, growing red around the edges. "This is insanity! The board was not consulted before-"

"The CEO of Nyte Industries does not require the Board's authorization when disposing of her own shares. You should read the company charter, it's eye-opening." Tsukihime laid the documents on the board room table. "Speaking of things you should read, perhaps you might try reading the room, Talfa? You've lost, and everyone here knows it."

"This- how are you qualified to even interpret this document?" Talfa looked as if it was taking all of his self control not to simply leap out of his seat and strangle Tsukihime.

Fayte smirked. "Oh, I've been waiting for this part."

Tsukihime cleared her throat, raising her voice. "I am Tsukihime Nyte, Shadowchaser. I have been a member in good standing of that group for the past century. I have spent my life everywhere between hell and heaven. I have built homes and businesses, I have fought both for and against the law, and I have seen the entire spectrum of human nature."

The board flinched as her presence became visibly more imposing, her words becoming harsher than steel. The shadows in the room seemed to deepen, swallowing the light and it felt the temperature was beginning to nosedive down. "You will not tell me what I am and am not qualified to interpret."

The harsh presence died away suddenly, as if it had never been there, and several board members breathed a sigh of relief in its passing. "Also, I studied business at an accredited university during my off-time for several years, and my bachelor's degree is as good as anyone's here. I had the charter checked by a lawyer friend, just to be sure. Two, actually. Including one who specializes in Infernal and Celestial Law."

Talfa looked to his last bastion of support. "Polmacrias, you cannot simply allow-"

"What she is saying... is true," The Incantifer admitted. "Mrs. Nyte, I am sorry to have doubted that your bride would be anything less than the woman I see before me. While I do not share your confidence regarding our relationship with our clients... your judgment of the situation is correct. I withdraw my doubts."

Talfa's expression resembled something between a child who has just had a holiday to the beach canceled, and a wounded animal's, Fayte noted with satisfaction. "This meeting is over. Get the hell out of my building and back to the jobs I pay you for."

Polmacrias and the other two non-present board members nodded and cut their transmissions while the four present ones collected their things and stood. Despite how effectively their little power-grab had been shut down, only Talfa showed any real emotion as they filed from the room.

Fayte knew why. Nytestone's board was comprised of some of the most ruthless businessmen she could find, all being incredible experts in their particular approach to security and their current jobs were incredibly cushy and profitable. To them, Talfa's attempt was nothing more than a shot in the dark to improve their business. Ultimately, nearly all of them were as indispensable to the company as she was and there wouldn't be any repercussions she could issue that could not weather.

Though Talfa would need something more than a sharp reprimand. Perhaps...

Her thoughts were interrupted by a pair of slender arms, a tail and wings all wrapping around her. It was easy to catch the soft smell of sugar as her wife nuzzled her ear. "That was fun. Who can I intimidate next?"

"Why, my dear Tsuki, one would think you were rather enjoying all of this." Fayte walked a pair of fingers up the succubus' face and smiled as Tsukihime wrinkled her nose cutely at the action.

"Of course. I'm a devil. And there is a fine line between intimidation and seduction in some cases." Tsukihime nosed Fayte's ear playfully. "Speaking of seduction..."

"You wish to be ravished here?"

"Why not? You own this building and we're too high up for anyone to actually see...though there's a thought." Hands wandered gently over and into Fayte's suit to fiddle with the buttons on the shirt underneath. "And is the table reinforced?

"You do not ever stop, I see." Fayte rolled her neck slightly to allow Tsukihime to kiss at it better and gave a pleased sigh. "And the table will take us. If not, I can always buy another one."

"Good." The tail slithered its way up and around Fayte's leg, drawing up between her thighs tantalizingly. "Now then, my wife, before we were so rudely interrupted..."

_~'Well, listen up, listen up. There's a devil in the church, got a bullet in the chamber and this gonna hurt!'~_

"Tsuki, _cheri_, I think that's your phone."

"If I ignore it, it'll go away." Tsukihime grinned as she nibbled on the vampire's ear, producing a soft mewl and her tail tip teased a bit. "I'm busy trying to finish my honeymoon."

_~Let it out, let it out, you can scream and you can shout, keep your secrets in the shadows and you'll be sorry!~_

"Honestly, I know you're a succubi, but-"

"Sorry, have my mouth too full of your delicious neck to answer."

"You don't _oooohhhh..mmm..._"

_~Everybody's getting numb, everybody's on the run, listen up, listen up. There's a devil in the church, got a bullet in the chamber and-~_

"Hello. Tsukihime's phone. Fayte speaking." A few second's pause. "Yes. I understand." She pushed the phone into the hand that was busy sliding up and unbuttoning her shirt. "Work, _ma cherie._"

"Hellfire." The succubus muttered under her breath and untangled herself from her wife, placing the phone to her ear as she began to walk and talk. "Yes? What is it?"

Fayte took a moment to enjoy the view of her other half walking away and then smiled faintly as there was a polite cough behind her. "Enjoying the show, Uton?"

"If it is all the same to you, milady, I think I prefer not to comment." Uton said, his cheeks slightly flushed. He, too, held a cell phone, though he was looking at the screen. "I just received a text from Gregory. There is a jet-black limo parked outside our front entrance."

"And this is important because...?"

"The license plates read 'B10DSKR'."

"...damnation."

"Well, I wanted to put that, but it was too many letters." Both Fayte and Uton turned towards the massive windows that filled one of the walls. Despite the lack of storm clouds in the night sky outside, lighting flashed strongly enough reveal the silhouette of two figures standing in front of them. A second later, thunder rumbled ominously. "Ahh, I just can't resist the dramatics."

Two women stood in front of the windows. One was elegant-looking in a stylishly cut business suit, her raven hair done up in a bun and a pair of spectacles perched on her nose. The other was a teenage girl, flamboyant in a red trenchcoat over a ruffled corset and pants. Red-tinted sunglasses masked her eyes and made the cheery smile she wore altogether unsettling.

"Hello, Fayte." She took off doffed her equally red hat and bowed, letting shockingly blue hair spill over her shoulders. Straightening, she grinned enough to bare a fang and replaced her hat on her head. "Nice to see you again."

The Shadowchaser could only manage weak smile. "Hello, Dracula..."

TTTTTT

The inside of the limo was rather quiet, only the low hum of the motor and the wheels over the pavement generating any noise. Fayte was seated in the rear, Uton and Tsukihime to either side. The raven-haired woman was relaxed a bit more, her legs crossed at the knee and hands resting in her lap, her face betraying nothing.

Dracula was far more at ease, her ornate hat occupying most of the seat beside her as she popped the lid to a hidden cooler and fished around in the ice for moment. "Let's see..." Producing a bottle, she studied the label and grinned. "Ooh, 1672. An excellent year for blood wine." Popping the cork, she poured herself a tumbler and proffered the bottle to Fayte. "Would you like a glass, my dear?"

"No, thank you." Fayte narrowed her eyes slightly. "You're underage, Dracula. You can't be more than sixteen in that body."

"Seventeen. And since this body is immortal, age no longer has any importance to it, right? Not to mention _I'm_ old enough to make Jalal look like a toddler in comparison." Dracula took a sip of her wine, leaning back against her seat with an arm draped lazily over the back. "My personal age doesn't change with the body I occupy, after all."

Fayte let the issue drop. "Why are you in that particular body? The last time I saw you, you were in the body of an older English gentleman."

"Figured it was time to for a change." The youth flicked some hair out of her eyes. "Most of my incarnations have been male, you know and it was getting so dull. Besides-" She giggled. "With this body, I get a _lot_ more compliments and after centuries of doing the charming, getting hit on is _such_ a wonderful feeling. Ohh, to feel the goggled-eyed stares of a virile young male again, makes me feel like I'm a hundred again."

The raven-haired woman made a bemused and pushed her glasses farther up her nose with a finger. "It's easy to stare at you when you're dancing on the nightclub stage and throwing half of your garments into the crowd." Her voice was had a strong European accent to it, but placing it's specific origin was impossible. It did make her voice rather pleasant to listen to, however.

"You should try it, might get rid of the stuffiness in those old bones." Dracula stuck her tongue out at the woman. "I know you were raised to be a proper lady, Penny, but that was a few hundred years ago. Loosen up a little."

"Be that as it may, I am your legal guardian while you're in your current body." She gained a slight smirk. "So unless you want me to send you to your room, do try and control yourself a bit more. Or I'll take away your desserts for a week, too."

"What? You can't do that, I paid good money for that chef to fly in and-" At the unyielding look on 'Penny's' face, Dracula huffed and flopped back her seat, crossing her arms in a pout that only teenagers could do. "You used to be fun, Penny. Like the old days."

Fayte snorted. "The old days consisted of Penelope here stalking down and destroyed the cruelest of our race and when you two first met, she threw you inside of a church and impaled you with a giant cross."

"Oh yeaaahhhh..." Dracula winced a bit, then brightened. "Still was a hell of a good fight, though. And the cross didn't hurt as much as it could have. I was Protestant at the time."

"Reminiscing about the past is fun, but it is hardly why you two are here." The Shadowchaser narrowed her eyes. "I've already had my honeymoon interrupted by a rather stupid board meeting and now by the two of you."

"You called us, remember. Wanted to use Penelope's influence to get the board to back down in case you couldn't handle it. Like Dumbledore staring down the Ministry of Magic." Dracula swirled the wine in her glass a bit. "Shame. The _Blue Blood_ would have had a wild night if you had let me perform. We had record attendance the last time..."

"And Tsukihime had to charm the crowd to keep them from erupting into a stampede over us." Fayte pointed out with a miffed expression. "I do not like having to draw a weapon on a crowd to keep them from my woman."

"The fact that you're so possessive means a lot to me, my love." Tsukihime tickled Fayte's chin with a grin and gave her a kiss as the other woman flushed slightly.

"Back to the matter at hand." Penelope said briskly as the two parted. Pulling out a remote, she thumbed it one and suddenly the limo was plunged into absolute darkness. A second later, a small holographic projection appeared between them in the center. "We need your help, Fayte. Both as a vampire and a Shadowchaser."

Fayte didn't answer as she studied the image. It was of a tall, bloody-haired man dressed in light plate armor from neck to toe and over his face was something resembling an opera mask, though it only covered his left eye. A massive blue cape that looked like it could swallow him hung over his shoulders as he crossed his arms and sneered defiantly out at his viewers.

A fang was bared as a hiss slid out between Fayte's teeth. "Castiel..."

"Giving the amount of vehemence you put into that, lover, I'm going to say that this Doctor Doom wannabe is bad news." Tsukihime said, leaning forwards to study the image.

"Castiel is a rogue vampire, once in the service of Grand General Palethorne. When the General was slain by the Knights Templar during the war, he seemingly vanished...and reappeared decades later, wielding the Orichalcos and working for Paradias." Penelope informed her.

"He was a Swordsman?" The succubus' lifted an eyebrow in appraisal. "We should have shut him down as soon as the Pharaoh beat the Leviathan- Jalal had us working night and day to track down all the stones and Paradias agents we could. Between the Shadowchasers, Interpol, Industrial Illusions, KaibaCorp and every other government agency with initials for a name, we damn near tore Paradias down to the foundations."

"Though Dartz and the Leviathan were beaten, it did not simply shut off the Orichalcos stones. They still work and through them, the Orichaclos cards. Despite attempts by Jalal, Pegasus and Kaiba, we have no way of knowing how many Orichalcos stones and cards every existed or how many agents Paradias had that could use them. Dracula and I have found and destroyed a few."

"Castiel reappeared a while back when Palethorne decided he was too good for just staying a pile of dust and made this rather sad little attempt at gaining power." Dracula took a drink of her wine, dismissing the events with a bored wave. "He tucked his tail and ran when it looked like it failed and we've been trying find him ever since. Gotten close a few times, but he's slippery."

Fayte bared her fangs slightly at the image, a dark look on her face. "He's still collecting souls with his Orichalcos card, trapping them in Duel Monsters cards. I ran into him back during my mission to China."

"Your China mission?" Tsukihime sat a little straighter, her eyes widening slightly. "Wasn't that when-"

"Yes. That was when my Renfield, Talkias, was killed. Sliced to ribbons by this nightmare and his soul trapped within a card." The Shadowchaser vampire growled.

Modern mythos often purported that vampires would garner supernatural creatures to guard themselves during the times they were vulnerable, but the truth was that much simpler. Renfields were sentient beings who pledged service to the vampire as their guardians, the pact sealed by their drinking of their new master's blood. This bestowed upon them low-level supernatural abilities and lifespan, while giving the vampire guards who could easily blend into society.

Of course, most beings who weren't part of vampire society viewed this as a form of magical slavery or worse and when the Great Treaty came about, there were many arguments about stopping the practice.

However, as it was the Great _Treaty _and so the vampires pointed out that Renfields had to be willing for the magic to work and that they were also part of vampiric culture. By Dracula's own decree ages ago, a vampire was responsible for anything his 'blood' (sired vampires and Renfields) would commit, as such individuals were seen as extension of their creator's 'self' in such regards. It was a measure to ensure that more powerful vampires kept control of their creations, lest the thirst for blood cause one individual to inadvertently reveal the race in attempt to slake said thirst.

In Fayte's case, this meant that her team of Renfields were effectively representations of her while she was Shadowchaser duty and essentially acted as deputies. This meant they were incredible useful in not only apprehending large groups of suspects, but also that Jalal had a ready-made team of trained spies and Special Ops for use when magical means were too risky or simply because most Shadowchasers weren't trained to deal with Mundane issues when called for.

Fayte and her team had been active for decades together and the China mission had been one that nearly cost them all their lives. The details were classified and both Fayte and her team refused to speak of it, the mere mention if it able to douse their spirits like water on a matchstick.

Tsukihime put a comforting hand on her wife's back and addressed the other two vampires in the vehicle. "So you need her help because you've found him again?"

"In a manner of speaking. Castiel has an undying hatred for the Shadowchasers for what he perceives as their failure to prevent our loss in the war and by extension, hates any one associated with them." The holographic image changed, this time to a rather plain-looking man in a labcoat. His only distinct feature was the fact he possessed spiky green and silver hair. "This is Doctor Hugo Cylas, a human wizard specializing in research of technomagic."

"I've heard of him." Tsukihime nodded. "He purports the theory that ley lines can be used as an infinite power source for the world given the right technology, even better than Momentum."

"Yes and rumor has it that he's on the verge of an important breakthrough. Unfortunately, this has drawn Castiel's attention to him. We believe that Castiel intends to force Doctor Cylas to use his research help him find a way to revive the Great Leviathan."

"With that thing under his control, he'd be an instant superpower in the world." Fayte lifted her eyebrow. "So we intend to use Cylas as bait, then?"

"Precisely. However, we are rather certain that the rumor of a breakthrough will have attracted more than just Castiel, which is why we need your help." Penelope told her. "As powerful as Dracula and I are, its best to be prepared just in case."

"Sounds like a plan. When do we start?" Tsukihime blinked in surprise as Dracula leaned forwards and tapped her nose with a finger. "Beg pardon?"

"Sorry, my dear. But vampire business is vampire business." The immortal teenage ruler of vampires grinned saucily. "Sides, wouldn't want that gorgeously sexy body of yours to get bruised up before I had a chance to explore it."

"You'd have to talk to my wife about getting a chance like that." Tsukihime informed her and smirked slightly. "Not that I think you could keep up with us."

Dracula laughed. "You, I like!" She poured herself some more wine and raised the glass in a toast. "Congratulations on your wedding, you two. I hope you have many long decades together."

She downed the glass in a single go and grinned at the rest of them. "Now then, will your lovely Watchguard being joining us, Fayte?"

"I am afraid not. Besides Uton, they rest are recovering in the hospital from a recent bought with a couple of ogres some idiot decided would make good muscle. They're currently intensive care."

"Your men?" Penelope asked sympathetically.

"The _ogres _are in the ICU. My men are mending their broken bones."

"...what kind of men do keep around you, Fayte?"

"Obviously the best kind. I would _love _to spend with men who can handle ogres..."

"Hormones can wait, Dracula."

"...phooey."

TTTTTTT

"_You and the others don't seem all that...worked up over your chance to finally get justice on Castiel, my love." _Tsukhime's frowned a bit as static danced over the video screen. "_Just where are you, anyway? You almost seem to be out of range."_

"Hard to get decent reception in a helicopter, Tsuki." Fayte was seated in the cargo compartment of the chopper, the vampire drawing her cape a bit tighter around herself. "And we're professionals, my love. We'll express how worked up we are about this by putting a bullet between Castiel's eyes and a stake through his heart."

"_You sure Jalal is going to let you get away with killing him? We do generally try to avoid that." _

"Castiel forfieted all and any protection the Treaty would have offered him years ago. If he is too much of a risk to bring in safely, we'll end him. And furthermore, this is vampire business. By the Treaty's law, we are able to handle someone like Castiel how we see fit. "

"_More of the blood calls for blood attitude, I see." _Tsukihime leaned back in her chair and crossed her legs. "_What was that word you told me awhile back? Malthird?"_

"Malverde." Fayte corrected her. "It an old vampiric word that translates to roughly 'wash blood with blood' or more poetically, 'Evil Be Slain'."

"_Your sire's motto, wasn't it?"_

"It was the motto for _all_ of the vampire knights under her command. Vampires are not a natural race of being, only created out of something else and we exist in tandem with what we born out of. If sentient beings exists as a web of life on this planet, then we are the white blood cells." She clenched her fist slightly. "Protectors and guardians..."

Tsukihime was silent for a moment. "_...you're the best damn white blood cell there ever was."_ She kissed her fingertips and pressed them to the screen. "_I love you. Don't forget- part of being a hero is coming home safe."_

"I know. It dishonors a knight to keep such a beautiful lady waiting for too long. Say a prayer to Erestrial for me." Fayte kissed her own fingers and touched to the tips of her wife's for a brief moment. "I love you, too."

The succubus smiled and waved briefly before the screen winked out.

"We're just over Cylas' lab." Penelope called over her shoulder from the cockpit. "There's an empty section nearby we're going to use as a landing zone."

"Good, but if Castiel is coming, then we need to hurry." Fayte stood and wrenched open the side door, her clothes snapping in the harsh wind.

"What are you doing?!"

"I've got a doctor's appointment to keep." With that, the vampire jumped. Her cape fluttered violently behind before it suddenly slid into rigidity in the form of the pair of wings. Soaring down towards her target, she allowed herself a tight, fanged smile.

This was going to be fun.

TTTTTT

The interior of the lab was dark and for the millionth time in her undead lifetime, Fayte was glad that being a vampire gave her night vision. At the speed she was running through the lab's corridors and whipping around corners, running into something would be very painful.

Reaching flight of stairs, she didn't bother to race up them, instead just leaping-frogging up between the two walls. Coming out of it in a tumble, she came up running. Cylas' lab was straight ahead.

The door practically flew off its hinges as she stormed through and skidded to a halt inside. "Dr. Cylas, I need you to-"

She cut herself off as she took in the situation in the room.

A man that she was nearly certainly was Doctor Hugo Cylas was slumped haphazardly over the back of his chair, a slash wound decorating what had been his face. Papers and the like were scattered about everywhere, presumably the doctor throwing whatever he was carrying into the air when he was shot. A nearby computer console was wrecked beyond repair, sparking and twitching faintly.

Standing opposite the room from here was a lithe figure clad in white armor, a mask with reflective lenses for eyes covering their face. J, the White Justice, known and wanted vigilante.

And in the second it took Fayte to process all of this, was tagged 'wanted murderer' as well.

Instantly, she drew _Tempest _and fired. J reacted inhumanely fast, ducking underneath the bullet and leaving the wall behind to be cratered. Fayte tracked the vigilante as they ran towards her at inhuman speeds, but was unable to get a second shot off before they closed the distance.

The Shadowchaser leaned to avoid a punch to the face and skidded back to a snap-kick. Out in the hall, she twisted around another lunging punch and landed a reverse-kick on J's back that sent them flying forwards. They turned it into a tumble, coming up out on their feet and whirling just in time to catch a bullet to the chest.

_Tempest _barked twice more as Fayte advanced, the explosive shots pitching the white-armored figure around like a ragdoll. J smashed into the edge of the stairway's railing, tumbling out of sight. Fayte dashed after them, flip up and over the figure as J's kanata was suddenly hissing through the air to try and take off her ankles.

The explosive round threw her against the wall and J back against the stairs, the points of impact cracking harshly. Both of them threw themselves forwards, metal shrieking as sword and gun collided.

Darkness swallowed Fayte and the ragged form she had become danced and swirled around J's blindingly fast strikes and then _Tempest'_ muzzle emerged, two quick shots throwing the vigilante over the railing. Fayte jumped after them, her feet cracking the ground as J rolled away and swept her feet out from under her.

The vampire winced as an armored heel crashed into her gut and then batted aside a katana stab. Both of them got to their feet and J's blade smashed down on _Tempest, _knocking the gun free of Fayte's hand. At the same, Fayte caught J's sword hand on the wrist and wrenched it at a bad angle. There was a staticy cry as J felt the pain and then dropped their weapon.

A swift kick bounced of the armor, but sent them stumbling back. Fayte didn't let up, raining punches all across their front so hard and fast thin cracks were spreading across the armor's front.

Then J pointed a wrist and Fayte staggered as smoke erupted from a hidden nozzle on it. Being a vampire mean she didn't have to breath, but the smoke stung her eyes and was thick and heavy around her. A curse slid between her lips as she heard J's sprinting away and she tore after them.

She burst out the lab doors just in time to hear the peel of rubber and see J's white D-Wheel barrel past the door. Ruby eyes narrowed after it and then she reached into her belt, producing a small sphere. She whipping it at the street, where it shattered and erupting into a swirling portal. "Alexandre! I need you!"

Nightmares were to warhorses as unicorns were regular horses. Conceived at a new moon and born on one, they were jet black with golden eyes and horns. Magical red flames comprised their mane and tail, while also wreathing their feet as they ran. Nearly half again as large as a regular horse and packed with muscle, all the regular unicorn's grace and majesty had become power and savagery.

Just like their standard counterparts, they could be tamed by special individuals and only under unique circumstance. These circumstances could be loosely outlined as 'chase the beast down and kick its ass in a fight' and special individuals for Nightmares are classified as 'those who live through their injuries and retain enough mobility to actually mount the animal.'. Magically resilient to a great degree, hard to harm with modern weapons, able to travel at high speeds for an extended period and with hooves that could crush steel with ease, the Nightmare was a powerful steed for any who managed to tame them and lived up to their name when confronting enemies.

As Alexandre galloped through the portal, her hooves striking sparks on the cement, Fayte was glad she had made the effort to tame one. The two months in the hospital had been worth it. Because not only did Alexandre keep pace with J's D-Wheel, the Nightmare knew the vigilante's scent and wouldn't loose track of it easily.

Leaping onto her mount, Fayte gripped the beast's seemingly intangible mane and squeezed with her heels gently. The Nightmare reacted easily, going smoothly from a dead stop to full gallop in the span of a few lengths.

It didn't take them long to catch up to J. Fayte frowned slightly as they rounded a corner and saw the D-Wheel barely a half-block ahead. J's D-Wheel wasn't that slow and even in a city, she'd seen the white-armored duelist travel at much greater speeds. J had baited her like this once before, back when they had first encountered one another, but that had been simply to coax her into a Turbo Duel...

First encounter...

Frown deepening, she nudged Alexandre to the side and they darted down an alleyway. Not pausing to look to see if J saw them vanish, they simply wove their way in and out and through the alleyways at lightning speed. Trash cans were crumpled under hooves and boxes obliterated with the mount's incredible pace.

J never saw them coming- Alexandre cleared the car parked in front of the alleyway just as J passed by. Brakes screeched and the bike crashed to its side, J's armor scraping against the street as they carried the momentum from their vehicle. Metal crumpled and bent as Alexandre smashed the D-Wheel under her hooves

The vampire caught a flash of white out of the corner of her eye and twisted her head in time to see J vanish into another alley, the armor scuffed and battered. With a twitch of her leg, Alexandre dove after them and Fayte was surprised to see to the vigilante disappearing up the wall by a retracting grappling gun. Without skipping a beat, she sprang from the unicorn's back and catching the bottom rung of the fire escape, flung herself up on to it.

J was waiting for her when she got to the top, standing on the far end of the roof and didn't even flinch when _ Tempest_ was aimed right between the mask's eyes. "This is where-"

"This where we had our first meeting six years ago, I know. That's how I know where to cut you off at." Fayte's finger eased into the trigger. "Why now, J? You didn't kill anyone during those six years and you took steps to save the innocent- why murder someone now?"

"Is it murder if that person will lead to the deaths of more innocent people-"

"No semantics." Fayte snapped coolly. "A murder is killing someone in cold blood. Doctor Cylas didn't even a chance to defend himself."

"...yes...yes, it is murder." J conceded. Their voice was neutral and filled with static, going through a voice changer. "I killed a guilty man in cold blood to save lives."

"What could he have been guilty of? He had no criminal record and was researching a new kind of power source via ley lines. How do you justify killing a man who was trying to help the world?"

"...do you believe in fate?" J said suddenly. "That events are predetermined to happen, destined to happen and we are merely cogs of destiny's whim?"

"Despite my name, I believe the only fate that exists is that we all answer to death in one form or another. In that, we are all equal." She glared down the gun's sight. "Answer, J. We've been playing at this whole Batman/Catwoman schitck for six years-why would you ruin that now?"

"When I woke up this morning...I found a reminder to something I didn't know I had forgotten. And when I remembered that...I realized that everything had changed. With no way to change it back, no why to make it how it used to be." J's hand tightened slowly. "I had to do what I did...even if I had to sacrifice my honor."

Something clicked inside the suit and Fayte nearly raised an eyebrow in surprise when J's spoke again. There was strong...and definitely female. "Six years of respect and comraderie end tonight, Fayte...and so do I."

Her hand disappeared behind her back and returned, holding the bloodied knife that was the murder weapon. J looked at it. "I've broken my honor and stained my hands with the blood..."

The knife was flung across the rooftop and J looked levelly at the Shadowchaser. "I will tell you everything, but...I have a last request. Let me go down fighting."

Fayte simply stared at her, gun not wavering a millimeter.

"Give me that, at least..." J held up her arm, her duel disk activating quietly. "My last battle as a duelist and a knight! Permit me honor one last time!" (JLP: 8000)

"..." Fayte was silent for a long moment and then she holstered her weapon, produced her duel disk and slid it onto her wrist. (FLP: 8000)

"...thank you, Fayte." It was easy to hear the smile in J's voice.

"Do not make me regret this, J." The vampire told her sharply. "If you want this duel to be your last, then come at me with everything you have! Don't throw this away to soothe your pride or guilt!"

"No, never." J promised before drawing five cards and then a sixth. "I begin by activating the continuous spell card Hysteric Sign." The card shimmered into existence before her. "And since I did so, I can move one Elegant Egotist from my deck to my hand."

Tucking the new card amongst the rest, she grabbed a different one. "Then I will set one card face-down and one monster as well. This ends my turn."

"Harpies...did you through Light monsters along with your honor, J?!" Fayte snapped her card free and then slapped it down. "I summon out Valkyrian Knight in attack mode!" With a flash of light, her monster appeared. A woman dressed in golden, eagle-themed armor and wielding a two-handed sword. (1900/1200) "Attack that defender! _Valhalla Sword!"_

The female knight yelled a battle cry, leaping forwards and cleaving the set card in two easily. J watched as the pieces revealed a phantasmal image of a large dragonfly for a moment. "That was Flying Kamakiri #1 and because you destroyed it in battle, it lets me special summon a Wind-attribute monster from my deck with less than fifteen hundred attack points."

She pulled the card free from her deck and slid it onto the tray. "I choose Armed Dragon LV3." A small, orange-skinned dragon with tan armor appeared in front of her. (1200/700)

Fayte swept two cards into her disk, watching them appear behind her knight. "I end my turn."

J drew and immediately slid her Armed Dragon LV3 card into her graveyard. "During my Standby Phase, Armed Dragon LV3 grows up and becomes Armed Dragon LV5!" The little dragon roared as it more than doubled in size, powerful spikes emerging from its armor and its body packed with muscle. (2400/1700) "I discard Harpie Queen to add Harpie's Hunting Ground from my deck to my hand."

She played the field spell and the area around them warped, becoming a barren plain of rock and dirt. A wind swept over it, stirring up small dust devils now and again. "In this place, all Winged-Beasts can two hundred points to both stats and whenever I summon a Harpy Lady, I can destroy one spell or trap on the field. So I'll do that right now by summoning Harpie Lady #1 in attack mode."

With a screech, the female monster swept out of the sky. Red hair, purple bodysuit and green wings on her arms did little to remove how fierce she looked, especially as she scraped her talons together. "And so now I will destroy my own Hysteric Sign card." (1300/1400-1500/1600)

The continuous spell shattered and then J held up the Elegant Egotist it had searched for her the previous turn. "And why stop there-I'll use this to summon out a second Harpie Lady #1"

Said monster began to glow and then split into two identical copies of herself, Fayte watching as her left set card shattered apart thanks to the effect of J's field spell. "And your #1's give all Wind monsters three hundred extra attack points." As she spoke, the Harpies and Armed Dragon all began to glow. (1500-1800 x2) (2400-3000)

"That's right and now Armed Dragon LV destroys your knight! _Spike Drive LV5_" The dragon roared, firing a volley of spikes from its body that skewered Valkyrian Knight and blew her into pixels. (FLP: 6900)

"Reverse card open! Knights of the Round activates when a monster is slain in battle- I can special summon a low-level Knight from my deck. I choose Banner Carrier of the Fierce Knights!" The monster's red and blue armor clanked as it appeared in a kneeling position. True to its name, it held a blue banner emblazoned with a mounted knight, complete with lance and shield. (1200/1300)

"And when this monster is summoned, I can add one Fierce Knight monster from my deck to my hand!" Fayte grabbed the card as her deck slid it out and then braced herself as one of the Harpie Ladies clawed her monster to bits and the other landed a claw-strike on her chest. (FLP: 5100)

"I end my turn." J watched as the two Harpies swooped back to her field and then her disk beeped. "During the End Phase of a turn when Hysteric Sign is sent to the graveyard, I can add three 'Harpie' card from my deck to my hand. " She held up the three named cards and then fitted them into her hand. Then her Armed Dragon roared and began to grow, its armor gaining more wicked blades and covering it more completely. "Did I forget to mention that since my LV5 dragon killed a monster, I can evolve it into Armed Dragon LV7?" (2800-3400/1000)

"You did. But that's fine." Fayte drew for her turn. "In case you don't remember, I'm running Knights and when a knight battles a dragon, the knight always wins!" A spell card appeared in front of her. "Ancient Rules lets me special summon a level 5 or higher Normal Monster from my hand! My choice is Gaia, The Fierce Knight!" (2300/1700)

"Gaia..." J sounded surprised as the blue-armored knight galloped out into play on his purple steed, brandishing his twin red lances. "Your favorite monster is strong, but my dragon is stronger still. How is he going to win?"

"Allow me to demonstrate- I activate the continuous spell card Spiral Spear Strike! Which, as it happens-" Fayte pointed at Armed Dragon LV7. "-is the name of the attack Gaia is going to use on your dragon!"

Why would-damn it!"J watched as the knight kicked his horse and galloped straight for her much larger monster. Suddenly a cable whipped out of nowhere, cracking her dragon across the face a couple of times and dropping him to his knees. Right in time to catch Gaia's lance through his chest. She threw up her arms as the dragon explode, pelting her with pixels. "Enemy Controller!" (JLP: 6700)

"Along with that, you take piercing damage courtesy of my Spiral Spear Strike card." Fayte slid her last two cards into her disk. "Turn End."

J drew sharply. "That was just like a knight-a straight forwards attack. But it's left you open as well! I summon Harpie Dancer in attack mode!" This Harpie's wings were white and she was dressed in a black-and-gold bellydancer's outft. It sparkled and shone as she moved gracefully to music only she could hear. "And her summon triggers my field spell's effect!" (1200-2000/1400-1600)

Fayte watched as one of her other cards was caught up in a sudden tornado and shattered. "That was my Wild Tornado and since you destroyed it, I'll use its own effect to get rid of this field spell!" The plains vanished, returning them to the rooftop and night sky.

"Tch..." J watched the vampire draw two cards and then swept her hands towards her. "I open the Overlay Network with my three monsters!" Becoming bits of light, the three monsters vanished into the portal that opened up above them. What descended out of it was a see-through red-skinned dragon with a black face and orange wings. Despite its intangiblity, it let loose a very real roar as three motes of light began to orbit it. "Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon!" (2000/2500)

"You gave up three monsters to summon that dragon, when one stronger than it already fell to Gaia." Fayte eyed the Xyz monster.

"Yes, but unlike my Armed Dragon, this card comes with useful abilities. First, you cannot target any Harpie monster I posses with attacks or card effects. As for the second-" J pointed at Fayte, who gasped as suddenly the dragon was right in front of her. "It can attack directly!"

Fayte snapped her fingers and Gaia wheeled his mount around, piercing and pinning the phantasm to the ground with both of his lances. "Staunch Defender forces your monster to battle Gaia!" The dragon struggled vainly and then shattered with a roar. (JLP: 6400)

"Nnnn...activate trap card! Level Bond! You draw two cards, but I get back any level monster I want! Like Armed Dragon LV7!" With a roar, the dragon reappeared, the blades on its body razor-sharp in the moonlight. "Destroy Gaia! _Spike Drive LV7!_"

Gaia was stoic, not flinching as the dragon charged across the field and cut him to digital pixels with a few slashes of its arm even as Fayte drew card. "Knights don't always travel alone-I activate Call of the Haunted to return Banner Carrier of the Fierce Knights to play!"

The trap flipped up, letting out a burst of smoke. It cleared to reveal the blue-armored knight, waving his banner about. "And just like before, he lets me add a Fierce Knight to my hand! So I choose Alessa, Fierce Knight of the Sky!"

"There are other knights besides Gaia?" Despite the mask covering her face, it was easy to hear J's surprise.

"There's more than that- Gaia is their leader." Fayte drew for the start of her turn and then pointed at her Banner Carrier. "This monster counts as two tributes for a Fierce Knight! So join this battle, Alessa!"

The Banner Carrier vanished and the sound of hooves filled the air as the new monster galloped out of the darkness. She rode the same steed as Gaia did, but her armor was a mix of pale-green and gold. Aquamarine hair flitted out from underneath her helm as she drew the two rich blue lances she out of their sheaths. (3000/0)

"Three thousand...!" J tensed slightly at the sight of the monster's huge attack score.

"Go! _Spiral Sky Strike!"_ Alessa reversed her grip one of one her lances, hurling it at the Armed Dragon like it was a spear. A swirl of energy erupted around the weapon and the dragon roared in pain as lance blew through its chest and embedded itself into the rooftop past J. "Your dragon falls yet again!" (JLP: 6200)

Fayte slid a card into her disk. "I activate Trial and Tribulations. During the End Phase, this card will activate an effect depending on the number of monsters I tributed this turun. Since it was one, I draw one card. End of turn." She drew once.

"Good...you're not holding back! And as befitting a battle between two knights, I won't either!" J drew and held up a spell card. "Terraforming lets me add a field spell card from my deck to my hand!" Catching the card her deck spat out, she immediately slid it into her field slot. "I activate Divine Wind of Mist Valley!"

"Another field spell..." To Fayte's surprise, their surroundings didn't change at all. Instead a faint breeze became noticeable and little flecks of magic were visible in it.

"No rule saying a deck can only one kind." J slapped a monster down onto her disk. "I summon Harpie Channeler to the field!" With a flutter of black wings, her new monster descended from the night sky. Unlike the previous Harpies, her oufit was rather revealing and she wielded a claw-topped staff in one hand. (1400/1300)

"I'll use her effect-by discarding a Harpie card, like my Harpie Sparrow Formation-" She slid the named trap card into her graveyard. "I can summon another Harpie monster from my deck in defense mode!"

Channeler twirled her staff with a flourish, scattering feathers that swirled around next to her. Then they scattered, revealing a massive burnt-red skinned dragon, its flame-themed wings attached to its arms and black-mask decorating its white eyes. "Like the original Harpie's Pet Dragon, who gains three hundred attack and defense for each Harpie Lady I possess." (2000/2500-2300/2800)

Channeler suddenly glowed, become a sphere of white light that vanished back into its card as J pulled it off her disk. "By returning a Harpie monster to my hand, I can special summon my Harpie's Dragon Tamer!" The new Harpie appeared with a screech, her wings a solid gold color and a golden length of chain resting her talons. A headdress resembling the Harpie's Pet Dragon was on her head and the dragon itself seemed to pleased at her arrival, leaning down to get its head stroked. (1400/1300)

"Because a monster was returned to my hand, the effect of my field spell lets me summon a level four or lower Wind monster from my deck!" The magical wind of the Mist Valley swirled over on an empty spot on J's field and then returned to normal to reveal the last of the Harpie Lady #1. (1300/1400-1600/1400) (1400-1700/1300) (2300/2800-2900/3400)

J pointed at her Dragon Tamer, who began to twirl her length of chain over her head. "By this discarding a Harpie card from my hand, I can special summon a dragon-type monster who's level is equal to or less than the highest level dragon I have, but it loses its special abilities for this turn and no dragons I have may attack!"

The Tamer snapped her chain up into the air, where it seemed to vanish. A moment later, she gave a tug and down from the sky came a moderately-sized dragon that looked to be made entirely out of blue...something. "Koa'Ki Meru Drago is my choice!" (1900-2200/1200)

Fayte gestured to Alessa, who seemed rather unimpressed by the small army of monsters J had. "You've got a lot of monsters, but only your Pet Dragon surpasses my monster in strength and its stuck in defense mode."

"Which is why I'm going to get rid of your monster in another way! Open the Overlay Network!" Harpie Dragon Tamer and Koa'ki Meru Dragon jumped into the portal. "By overlaying two level four Wind-attribute monsters, I can Xyz Summon my Lightning Chidori!" (1900-2200/1600)

The monster that descended lived up to its name, a bird formed entirely out blue electricity. It trilled as it arrived, lightning sparkign around it. J pointed at her monster and one of the orbiting lights faded away. "By detaching a Xyz Material from Chidori, I can return one monster on the field to the top of the owner's deck! So your knight of the sky has just run into a little more than some bad weather!"

True to her words, Alessa was swept up away and a tornado that sprang out of nowhere. "Now Lightning Chidori and my Harpy Lady will attack you directly!" Fayte staggered as the two monsters leapt forwards, raking her with their talons. (FLP: 1300)

The masked duelist folded her arms, obviously pleased at her progress. "Now I end my turn and you get to draw. Though we both know what it is."

"Yes." Fayte drew and then grabbed one of the remaining cards in her hand. "Since I don't have the resources to summon Alessa this turn, I activate Sacred Sword of Seven Stars, banishing Alessa to pick up two more cards."

Snapping the new cards up, she held up one. "The Warrior Returning Alive adds Gaia to my hand and then I'll use Polymerization to fuse him with my King of the Swamp!" The image of the blue-armored knight reappeared on the field and then swirled together with a mess of foliage and swamp water that looked only vaguely human.

What emerged was Gaia atop a yellow dragon with segmented carapce-like body, screeching as flames licked out of its mouth. "Gaia the Dragon Champion!" (2600/2100)

J shielded her face reflexively as the Champion flew across the field, one lance catching her Chidori and throwing it the air while the second skewered it sharply. The Xyz shrieked lamely before it blew apart into pixels. (JLP: 5800)

Fayte smiled slightly as her Champion lazily flew back around to land in front of her. "I set one card face-down and end my turn."

"Draw!" J pointed at her dragon and it rumbled as it stood to its full height, spreading its arms eagerly as flames began to dance around its mouth. "Attack! _Inferno Wave!"_

"Activate Trap Card! Curse of Anubis!" The trap lifted and purple fog began to billow out it, covering the field in a haze. "All effect monsters in play are switched to defense mode and have their defense scores reduced to zero this turn!"

"What? Damn!" J clenched her fist in frustration as all three of her monsters retreated into defense mode, her Pet Dragon almost looking unhappy about the whole mess. "Why didn't your Dragon Champion go to defense mode?"

"Gaia is a Non-Effect Monster, thanks to a little known ruling from years ago. He has card text necessary for his status as a fusion, but isn't considered to be an effect monster for all intents and purposes He is not a Normal Monster, either, but that's hardly pertinent here." Indeed, Gaia didn't even seem to notice the haze covering the field.

"Can't believe that didn't come up before, all the times we've dueled..." J staggered suddenly, one hand flying to her chest as she nearly doubled up over in pain.

"What is happening to you, J?" Fayte frowned and took a step forwards, but was halted by the vigilante suddenly straightening firmly.

"On your honor, don't you dare take another step forwards. Instead, fulfill your promise and finish this duel!" J said fiercely and swept her hand card into disk, watching it appear behind her trio of monsters in a flash. "End of turn."

Fayte drew as the haze from her trap card cleared. "Gaia! Attack and destroy her Harpy Lady #1! _Double Dragon Lance!"_

The feathered woman screeched and tried to fly away as the knight swooped across the field, but didn't gain altitude fast enough to avoid being pierced by one of Gaia's lances. "And since Spiral Spear Strike is still in play, not does Gaia deal you piercing damage, but since it was the Dragon Champion, I can draw two cards so long as I discard one from my hand." (JLP: 4600)

The vampire did so and then after taking a moment to study them, dropped one in the graveyard. "And since you lost your Harpy Lady#1, your dragon loses some attack points, doesn't it?"

"Yes..." J watched as her dragon sagged as its points fell as did her Dragon Tamer's. (2900/3400-2300/2800) (1700-1400)

"I set one monster in defense mode, one card face-down and call it a turn." Fayte allowed herself a slight smirk. "Now what will you do?"

"Everything I can to win." J replied resolutely and snapped a card up for her turn. "I activate Pot of Avarice!" Harpie Queen, Lightning Chidori, Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon, Flying Kamakiri #1 and Armed Dragon LV3 all out of her graveyard. She scooped up the stack and shuffled them into her deck before drawing twice more.

"I sacrifice my Dragon Tamer to summon Armed Dragon LV5!" The Harpie vanished to be replaced by the looming armored dragon, who immediately began to grown as its armor became more covering and spikes erupted everywhere. "And then I'm activating Level Up to evolve into Armed Dragon LV7!"

"Blast..." Fayte's ruby eyes then went slightly wider as the dragon roared, standing up on its hind legs. The armor gained a sheen to it and the spikes elongated into wicked curves, their edges glinting dangerously. "Why is it still growing!?"

"Because by sending Armed Dragon LV7 to the graveyard, I can call out its final evolution! Armed Dragon LV 10!" The dragon roared, every moment of its body highlighting how dangerous it looked. (3000/2800)

A card from her hand was dropped into the graveyard and the dragon's spikes began to glow. "By discarding a card from my hand, I can destroy all face-up monsters you control! _Spike Armageddon!" _The dragon roared again, launching inummerable spikes from its body that all zipped towards Gaia.

Fayte couldn't even it happen-there was flash and then the blades were all buried in the ground around her field. Gaia was slowly dissolving into so many pixels and then he was washed away by fire as Harpie's Pet Dragon lumbered forwards and breathed forth a wave of flames onto her set monster.

J watched as pixels flew out of her dragon's flames and then an image of the destroyed monster appeared above Fayte. "Morphing Jar. I see...but a new hand isn't going to save you!" Both duelists slid what remained of their hands into the graveyard and drew five new cards. "Armed Dragon! Attack her life points directly! _Spike Drive Final!" _

Fayte tensed as the dragon swept both of its arms in her direction, unleashing fresh volleys of spikes at her. "Reveal quick-play card- Knight's Duty! Now I can special summon one Knight monster from my hand!"

As before, there was the sound of hooves and out galloping another knight. He rode the same horse as the two before him, but his armor was a mix of gray and red. More surprisingly, instead of lances he carried a powerful looking shield that he used to catch the spikes before they could hit his summoner. "Dan, Fierce Knight of the Plains!" (2500/3000)

"Three thousand defense points?" J stared at the monster...and then laughed happily. "That's incredible! An excellent dodge yet again!"

The vigilante held out of her fan of cards. "But I've seem to had have more control over this duel than you and your dodging can't last forever." She discarded one card and Armed Dragon unleashed a volley of spikes that pulverized Dan. "Finesse in a fight is all well and good, but if you lack the power to make a big move to gain the advantage, all you're doing is delaying the inevitable! How do you expect to take this battle seriously if all you do is dodge!?"

"A big move..." Fayte drew for her turn and her lips quirked. "If that's what you want, J, then I'll gladly provide. I activate the spell card Eternal Quest, allowing me to pick up two Normal Monster 'Fierce Knight' from my graveyard." She quickly picked Dan and Gaia as they slid out of her graveyard.

"Then I'll use another Ancient Rules to summon out Gaia once more!" The leader of the Fierce Knights appeared in front of her, clashing his lances together. "And then the card Xyz Reception lets me bring out a monster from my hand that is his level, but any effects it has are gone and its attack score becomes zero."

With a flash of light, Dan reappeared. At the same time, seven stars appeared above Gaia to indicate his level. "By using the quick-play card, Star Changer, I can add or subtract one level to any monster I control. I think I'll raise Gaia to level eight."

J stared as a new star appeared above the knight. "Why would you do that-if you're going for an Xyz Summon, you've ruined any chance of that!"

"Hardly. I still have one more spell card to play. It's called Group Promotion-I select one monster of level 7 or higher and then all monsters on my field rise to that monster's level until the end of my turn." Stars appeared above Dan's head and then went from seven to eight. "I open the Overlay Network!"

The two knights rode into the portal without hesitation. What emerged was a blue-and-green scaled mountain of a dragon that was easily a head and shoulders taller either of J's beasts. Lighting arced all over its body as it stepped free of the other dimension and its roar was more like the clap of thunder. "Meet Thunder End Dragon!" (3000/2500)

Armed Dragon and Pet Dragon roared challenges at the new arrival, who merely loomed over them as the lightning around its body intensified. "And by getting rid of an Overlay Unit with this monster on the field, I can destroy all other monsters in play."

Thunder End Dragon pulled one of the orbiting spheres it had in front it, lighting flying from all over its body and into the glowing bauble. It doubled in size and then again, dancing with barely contained energy. "Thunder End Dragon! _Lightning Storm__!_

J cried out as the blast smashed into her field, kicking up a small storm of lightning and energy. Her two dragons writhed as it danced over their bodies before exploding into pixels. But there was no time for respite as Thunder End Dragon's claw emerged from the maelstrom and slashed her across the chest. (JLP: 1600)

Fayte watched as the vigilante straightened, though it was obviously painful. "That evens things up a bit." Glancing at the last card in her hand, she tossed it onto her disk where it appeared behind her Xyz monster. "I end my turn."

"I guess I got what I asked for..." J's tone seemed to indicate they were smiling as she drew for her turn. "This puts us in the end game, doesn't it?"

"It does..." Fayte was quiet, her arms folded across her chest.

"Then let's see who comes out on top one last time!" J held up a spell card. "Spellbook Inside the Pot means we both draw three cards."

They did so and then she pointd at her set card, which flipped up and began to spill out flashing lights and pounding music. "The trap card Hysteric Party lets me discard one card to revive as many Harpie Ladies from my graveyard as I can!"

In successive flashes of light, her three Harpie Lady#1, Harpie Dragon Tamer and Harpie Channeler all appeared in front of her, screechin and spreading their wings. "Five monsters...exactly what I needed."

"Five monsters...!?" Fayte stared at her. "What could you possibly need to summon with that many monsters!"

"My reminder." J pointed sharply at her monsters. "For the last time, I open the Overlay Network!" Unlike before, however, her monsters did not enter a portal. Instead, they became beings of light. They drifted together to combine into a single blazing pillar.

Fayte shielded her eyes, squinting into the light as it pulsed and twisted around itself. She saw gauntleted hands emerge from it and then she duck away as the hands scattered the pillar apart. When she felt it was safe enough look, she did so...and felt her breath get taken away.

Standing in front of J was a monster unlike any she had ever seen. It was definitely female. Platinum-colored hair that was easily waist length swished gently in the wind from the vigilante's field card, while elegant blue armor that was trimmed in gold covered the monster from the neck down and seemed to shine in the moonlight.

The Xyz regarded Fayte coolly and then glanced up at the Thunder End Dragon, a small smirk parting her lips. Metal rang through the still night air as she pulled her blade from the sheath at her sight, revealing it to be a powerful long-sword decorated with runes along the blade's length. The weapon was a blur as she slashed it through the air to test its heft while her points flashed above her head. (2500/1900)

J inclined her head towards the monster, sweeping out a hand in a welcoming gesture as five orbs of light began to circle around the armored woman. "Steelheart, Dragon of Justice."

"What...kind of card is this?" Fayte couldn't believe it. That monster looked so real and alive...and familiar. Then it hit her and her eye widened as she took a half-step forwards. "Are you-"

"I activate one of her special abilities!" J shouted, overriding Fayte's attempted question. "By detaching an Overlay Unit, I can raise her attack by one thousand until the end of my turn!" Steelheart held up her sword and one of the spheres around her flew into the blade. The runes light up sequence down the wepaon and when it was shining sharply, she sprinted towards the dragon. (2500-3500)

Thunder End Dragon growled and snapped its head toward the much smaller monster, but Steelheart moved faster than should have been possible in that kind of plate armor. Spinning around the biting fangs, the dragon's body jerked sharply as she drove her blade through its neck in one stab. With a hard tug, she tore the weapon free upwards...and along with it was Thunder End Dragon's head. (FLP: 800)

Fayte watched her dragon explode into dust and Steelheart leap back to her spot in front of J. The Xyz rested her weapon on her shoulder, cocking her head slightly at the vampire. Then she raised her free hand and crooked a finger at Fayte, daring her to come after her.

J remained quiet, watching her new monster carefully and then slowly shifting her attention back to Fayte. "It is your turn. And if you don't defeat me on it, it will be your last."

The Shadowchaser stared at J for a long moment, questions burning on the tip of her tongue. But she knew that J would not answer them, not now. If she desired any explanations, they would come after she won. "I draw."

She glanced over the cards carefully. Plenty of options, but something was nagging her in the back of her mind. Something she had to do..."I activate Monster Reborn to revive Gaia the Fierce Knight!" In a flash of light, her deck's lead monster was back.

"Then I summon Unkown Synchron in attack mode." The monster was metal sphere with a single eye in the center, two antenna on top and no larger than a soccer ball. "Then I tune my level seven Gaia and level one Unknown Synchron together!"

The two monsters broke apart into the traditional Synchro rings and stars. A rune-covered sword fell from the sky, burying itself halfway into the ground as the new monster formed. It was a man, clad in powerful-looking red armor. As he fully materialized, he rose from his kneeling position and pulled the sword free easily. There an ageless look in his eyes and while he didn't seem as lively as Steelheart, he was definitely more 'there' than most monsters. "Dragonprince Jalal!" (2500/1900)

Jalal's sword began to glow as the runes lit up one by one. "He gains one Fortune Counter for each monster used in his summoning and I can expend one to have him force one card on your field face down!" The synchro nodded and swept his blade in front of him, unleashing a crescent wave of energy.

"I activate another one of Steelheart's effects- by detaching one Overlay Unit on her, any effect that targets her doesn't apply!" Steelheart's sword absorbed another surrounding mote of light and slashed her blade vertically in front of her. It released another crescent of energy that roared forwards. Wind and light scattered as the two crescents collided violently.

Fayte plugged a card into her disk and Jalal held out his left-hand. Light gathered there and materialized into a shield, red with gold time and spikes on the corners. He tested its heft and then nodded, apparently pleased with it. "Magnum Shield raises Jalal's attack by his original defense since he's Warrior monster." (2500-4400)

J watched as Jalal charged across the field, Steelheart sprinting forwards to meet him. "You got me...Steelheart's effects can only be used once per turn." Metal shrieked as the two monsters' weapons collided...

And kept colliding, Fayte staring in disbelief as the two seemingly ignored the rules of the game. Instead, they were dueling at speeds most humans could barely follow, sparks showing where their weapons clashed again and again.

And despite her heart having no real function whatsoever, a hand flew to her chest as the vampire felt a sharp pain erupt for a long second.

TTTTTT

All over the world, Shadowchasers felt the same pain in their chests, as if death's icy hand had gripped the organ ever so briefly. No one was hurt, but all were left wondering what had just happened...

TTTTTT

In his office, Jalal Stormbringer vaguely heard his teacup fly to the floor and shatter, having fallen from his hand as pain erupted in him. His hands clutched at his head and he gritted his teeth, trying to understand just what was erupting in his mind.

_A temple in the sky, the bottom covered in pulsing-heart like objects. A storm as black as pitch raged overhead, thundering as if the earth itself was angry. A light erupted from the temple, transforming into a massive circle of light and he realized it was a summoning seal. One nearly a mile wide. It was only then he realized he was yelling in rage at the small figure he could see standing on top of the temple. And despite the distance between them, he could hear female, mocking laughter right in his ear..._

_He was fighting, brawling with a legion of monstrosities-human only in shape and nightmare in everything else. His blade cut through them, magic burned and seared as fast he could speak the words. But there were so many and they surged forwards to overwhelm him. Then a cheerful laugh as a second sword entered the fray, cleaving through the front of monsters easily. He turned and saw his own face, framed in ice-blue hair and stained with blood. The warrior laughed and said something he couldn't hear, before leaping headlong into the pile of monsters..._

_Someone was shouting at him, he was shouting and the storm still raged overhead and even intensified, as if trying to argue with him. The dead and dying-humans, Shadowkind and things he cared not to know- lay around him. Smoke poured up from the city and the temple in the sky was shaking, surging with power. Someone else shouted, but he ignored it and slammed his hand onto the button of the machine in front of him. It was the only option, the only way..._

_He stood and watch in amazement. Sheets up clear fire erupted skywards noiselessly and he staggered from __the impact as the earth shook and the shockwave hit him- thunder without sound. The temple began to fall, breaking about into nothingness as and he heard a horrible scream of agony and frustration of whatever was in there dying. Pain burned though his body and he felt his exhaustion catch up to him, pitching him forwards into merciful unconsciousness..._

The images cleared as quickly as they came and Jalal heaved for breath, as if he just run a marathon. He grabbed for them, but they were gone now and he felt only the impressions they had left. He eyes scanned his room desperately and he gripped his chair to steady himself, trying to figure out an answer to all of this.

TTTTTTT

In London, England, twenty-four year-old Judy LaBaron sighed, kicking off her heels as she entered her room. Reaching up, she undid the tie that held her hair up and shook it out before making her way to her nightstand. Another unsuccessful date, another wasted night. It wasn't that she minded most men, but none of them could hold her interest well. Even the Aware ones. She had even tried dating outside her species, but none of them were much more interesting, either. It all came back to what they wanted from _her. _

Depositing her jewelry on her nightstand, she flopped back into her desk hair and pulled a sheet of paper forwards and a pen. At least _he_ would understand. Despite being a pen pal, he probably had a better understanding of her than anyone else did and they'd never even met in real life. Besides, it was nice to vent.

She didn't get past the '_Dear_' when pain erupted in her skull and her hand jerked, dragging a rip down the length of paper. Her eyes closed as if she was trying to squeeze the pain out and images flooded her brain.

_Standing in front of Jalal, a warm feeling suffusing her. He was smiling broadly and from the way her cheeks hurt, she was, too. She turned and found over a hundred Shadowchasers and allies kneeling as she did so. And this was it, she realized. She was leader now..._

_She was standing in front of Jalal's gravestone, though it was only a tribute. Jalal was gone, but so far so that he might as well be dead. Everyone was gone. Or going. Everyday, she heard more and more reports about whole tribes of Shadowkind just...vanishing. Gone without a trace, the force that brought them here taking them back to where they had come from. And she knew why. __M__agic __was__ dying__-every hour, every minute, every second, there was a little less to work with, a little less to help you __**exist. **__Only magic that was divine or demonic in origin, like her immortality, would sustain itself because it wasn't tied to the Earth. And she didn't know how to stop it..._

_It was the deepest part of the Shadowchaser's HQ-once housing prisoners, but now a last sanctuary. But even this far underground, she could hear then explosions and blasts as war raged overhead. It was a last-ditch stand by those who could still call themselves 'Shadowchaser', fighting with anything they could lay their hands on. With magic, it would have been possible to win. Without it, it was their enemy's effort to stomp out the last bit of resistance to their plan._

_She glanced down at the white armor she wore she wore, its helmet tucked under her arm. On the belt, she could see the various decks she was going to use-all of them carefully constructed to avoid altering the world she was going to. Even if she was caught or killed, it would be okay-they weren't any cards no one hadn't seen before._

_All of them but her reminder. The one thing she had to have. _

_She lifted her head to the device in front of her. A doorway cobbled together out of all the tech they could reverse-engineer or invent on the fly. __Inside swirled a vortex of colors that she was sure weren't didn't exist, but were there anyway. _

_It was the only way now...and she hoped that when the time came, she knew what had to be done and could do it..._

The memories of events that had never happened were gone and Judy slumped over her desk. She felt exhausted and despite her efforts, she could not recall what she had just seen. Only feel very worried...and frightened.

TTTTTTT

Fayte watched as Jalal and Steelheart dueled, Jalal finally disarming her with a deft move with his shield and landing a powerful slash across her front. She seemed to smile as he did so, simply fading away slowly instead of becoming pixels. (JLP: 0)

The move had happened so fast only J's reflexes didn't jerk her head out of the way in time, Steelheart's blade shattering part of the mask off before it vanished. Bits of metal and glass trickled to the ground as the vigilante raised hand to that part of her face, bits of blood leaking out between her fingers to stain the armor.

"...why didn't you tell anyone, Judy?" Fayte had remained at her spot even as the holograms from the duel faded. "Why do all this?"

"Couldn't risk corrupting the timeline..." Judy removed the remains of the damaged mask, tossing it aside. Her face was still youthful and pretty, despite the cut she had received on her cheek. Platinum hair shone in the moonlight, but had been cropped short to fit under the mask. "So I wiped my mind when I came back and made myself believe I was J. Or one of him. We never did find out who was under the mask or if it was just one guy or a bunch of people with the same outfit in my timeline."

Fayte's watched as Judy's form suddenly rippled between phantasmal and solid. "You realize that now you've succeeded in preventing your own timeline, you don't exist."

"Nothing could make me happier." Judy chuckled at the solid look on Fayte's face. "Just like you, seeing a time-traveler vanish from existence right before your eyes and you barely bat an eye."

"Of course. Hard to arrest someone who doesn't exist." She brushed some hair back over her shoulder. "Why Cylas?"

"Yliaster agent. His method of drawing energy from ley lines would lead to finding a way to detonate them. Without ley lines, magic dies in the world." Judy was almost gone now, more ghost than solid. "I've done all I can."

"That's fine. You've earned your vacation time," Fayte's coat billowed in the wind slightly. "I'll take up your sword."

"That's right...you carry the will of fallen knights..." Judy sounded pleased. "Thank you...for everything..."

And she was gone, never to have ever been and never would ever be.

Fayte remained motionless, staring up at the moon. "...you're welcome."

"_Fayte?" _Her commpiece crackled in her ear, Penelope's voice emerging from it. "_We've run into Castiel. He seems to have found some more Orichalcos stones, as he's got some Orichalcos soldiers with him. We need some help keeping them boxed in." _In the background, it was easy to hear Dracula's cheerful laughter and the sounds of flesh being rent as the ruler of all vampires tore into the enemy.

"Yes. I'll be right there. And we won't have to worry about Cylas." Fayte turned from the rooftop's edge and whistled. A moment later, Alexandre made her underneath.

"_What? Why not?"_

Fayte dropped herself atop her mount easily. "Someone took care of the problem for us."

TTTTTTT

The Shadowchaser leader watched the fog cover the scene in the globe. She leaned back into her chair, steeping her fingers together thoughtfully. "I was never told of this particular incident."

"You didn't need to know. Jalal kept it very quiet. He didn't want to let on to Yliaster somehow that he knew they were up to something. More so, the time travel bit was possible. If someone discovered that it was possible to rebuild Z-One's technology, the entire timeline of the world would be in horrible danger." The Librarian finished her hot chocolate with a contented sigh. "Oh, that hit the spot."

Setting the cup down, she stretched and then leaned her face against her arm lazily, a small smile playing at her lips. "So are you satisfied, Miss LaBaron?"

"I am. Thank you, Emily." Judy was watching the swirling fog in the globe aimlessly. "It is nice to know that even if things in Backwater had played out differently all those decades ago, I would have a good person."

"Indeed. Few people ever find such reassurances in their lifetime." Emily's smile became a teasing smirk. "Though, from where I sit, I think you turned out to be a rather great, _gorgeous_ person."

"Mmph." A faint blush crept up the platinum-haired woman's cheeks. "Enough of your teasing, bookworm. Don't you have something else to do?"

"Indeed I do, scales." Emily stood up and swept out out of her chair gracefully. "I have to prepare your bedroom for later tonight."

"What!?" Judy jumped to her feet, red in the face. "What are you talking about! You've never been that one or-" She scowled as Emily giggled and flashed her a V-sign, revealing she was only yanking Judy's chain. "Hate you."

"No, you don't." The two women stuck their tongues out at each other and then Emily sashayed out the door, humming to herself. "I'll be back later-be sure to put up some mistletoe where we can get some good use out of it!"

Judy watched her leave and sighed bemusedly. "If she wasn't so good-looking and good at her job, she'd be insufferable..."

Her phone rang and she picked up. "Hello?"

_"Hi, __kettle__. This is __pot__. Just wanted to let you know you're black._"

"Dammit, Emily!"

Her only response was laughter and the leader of the Shadowchasers buried her face in her arms with a groan.

TTTTTT

A/N: _A tragic timeline averted and one that seems better is in the future...__but the distance between the present and future is vast. For those in the present, Emily and Judy are a 'could be' and if something errs just a slight, a 'never be'..._

_Have questions? Good! Like I said, they will all be answered in the Backwater fic itself. I do __hope I've stirred your interest..._

Secret Life of Characters #5: Fayte Nyte

"_Malverda." _(Evil Be Slain)

Some would consider Fayte and her hardline ideals of knighthood, honor and right and wrong to be something of a relic, a remnant of age long since gone and wholly unsuited to the modern world.

These same people never realize that they can sleep in their bed safely because of exactly what Fayte is.

Emerging shortly after the first season Yu-gi-oh! GX, Fayte was first encountered after the events of Season 1 of GX, literally showing up at the Shadowchasers HQ in Britain in the dead of the night and asking to see Jalal. Backing her request was the presence of both Dracula and Penelope. Much to everyone present surprise, Jalal agreed to meet with them and the four wandered a little ways off from the base to have a private discussion.

What was said that night, only they know and when it was over, Fayte was inducted into the ranks of the Shadowchasers. For several years, she was used a 'Black Ops' agent for the group and sent to accomplish missions that ordinary Shadowchasers simply could not do. It was during this time she met Tsukihime and later, collected her Renfields that would form the Watchguard.

Later, Fayte switched duties to relocate to Backwater and not only opened up a nightclub, the _Blue Blood_, but started Nytestone Incorporated. The company specializes in providing Shadowkind security systems and the like, making sure that they look ordinary to humans despite the advanced magical protection they provide. The company is quite profitable, thanks to a niche market and the fact many of their customers can pay in gold.

Due to her long-time covert status, Fayte is something of an enigma to both the criminal element and teams of Shadowchasers not her own.

This suits her just fine.

Modern-day legends tell humans and Shadowkinds that vampires are the rulers of night, something powerful and mysterious. Fayte likes to give them a poignant reminder as to _why_ that image of vampires exist.

_Deck: _Fayte's deck is something unique to behold, given its focus on Normal Tribute monsters in a world where Synchros dominate most player's strategies. More over, she uses something like Gaia as a headliner, whose score is ultimately weak compared to many single tribute monsters. However, as shown here, there are ways to make the strategy effective and dangerous- a surprise Synchro or Xyz and even a Fusion can swiftly turn the tides and many people compare the relentless charge of her knight monsters to standing in front of a real-life cavalry charge.

The set itself is not complete, though more cards are forthcoming in the future and the full extent of the strategy isn't known.

Just know it will involve spears.

_Origins: _Fayte was actually the original Shadowchaser I conceived for the team, because there weren't enough Shadowkind Shadowchasers and I figured a species that had been driven nearly to extinction would have at least -one- member out to make sure that didn't happen again. She's also the character to least evolve as my plans for the story to progress, but we'll see if she can't surprise us.

Created Cards:

Fayte

Banner-Carrier of the Fierce Knights  
EARTH  
3 stars  
Warrior/Effect  
1300/1200  
Effect: When this card is summoned, you may select one level 7 Fierce Knight' in its name in your Deck or Graveyard and add it to your hand. If this card would be tributed for the Tribute Summon of a 'Fierce Knight' monster, this card may used as two Tributes.

Dan, Fierce Knight of the Plains

Monster/LIGHT/Warrior/7*

Atk 2500/Def 3000

"_They have asked me why I choose to fight. I tell them, it is not because my heart longs for battle- but a warrior cannot let his friends battle alone. Therefore I am a shield to all, and they become my sword."_

Alessa, Fierce Knight of the Sky

Monster/WIND/Warrior/7*

Atk 3000/Def 0

"_They ask me why I do not fight on the ground, as the others do. I tell them that it is only here, in the sky, where there is enough room for both myself and my fighting spirit."_

Note: The previous two cards were created by Scarlet Weatherman. All creative credit goes to him.

Knight of the Round  
Trap Card  
Effect: Activate only when a monster you control is destroyed as a result of battle. Special Summon one level four or lower 'Knight' monster from your Hand or Deck.

Knight's Duty  
Quick-Play Spell Card  
Effect: Activate only when you have no monsters on your side of the field. Special Summon one 'Knight' monster from your hand.

Group Promotion  
Normal Spell Card  
Effect: Target 1 face-up Level 7 or higher monster you control; the Levels of all other face-up monsters you currently control become the current Level of that monster, until the End Phase.

Eternal Quest  
Normal Spell Card  
Effect: Add two Level 7 or higher 'Fierce Knight' Normal Monsters from your Graveyard to your Hand.

J

Harpie Dragon Tamer  
WIND  
4 stars  
Winged-Beast/Effect  
1400/1300  
Effect: This card's name is treated as 'Harpie Lady' while it face-up on the field or in your Graveyard. You may return a face-up Wind-attribute monster you control to your Hand to special summon this card from your Hand. Once per turn, you may special summon a Wind-attribute Dragon-type monster from your deck whose level is equal to or lower than the highest level Dragon-type monster on your side of the field. The monster summoned by this effect has its effect(s) negated until the End Phase and during the turn you activate this effect, no Dragon-type monsters you control may attack.


	9. The Psychic's Tale

Shadowchasers: Twice-Told Tales  
By 7th Librarian

_A/N: And we're back here again, aren't we? Good, because I've got another fun story for you all. I hope you all enjoy and find it worth reviewing. _

_If not, then let me waste your time with a lovely joke!_

_A jogger is jogging down a dirt road and passes by a field with a horse in it. The horse trots up to the fence and tells the jogger. "Hey, buddy! I used to be a Kentucky Race horse, but now I'm stuck pulling this farmer's dumb plow. I've still got good legs on me! If you buy me off him for ten thousand, I'll win you a hundred grand in a week!"_

_The jogger thinks 'Wow, a talking horse!' and jogs on up to the farm house and knock on the door._

_The farmer answers and asks him 'Whaddya want?"_

"_Sir, I'd like to buy your horse for ten thousand dollars, right now, on the spot. What do you say?"_

_The farmer says. "Buddy, let me save you some trouble. That horse has never been to Kentucky."_

_Ahhh, that was hilarious, wasn't it? _

_I say it was. Ahhh, I crack myself up...see, now your time reading this is validated! You have learned something- never trust a talking horse! Whoever said fanfiction doesn't teach you anything is a liar. Go tell them that._

_Now then, on with the show..._

TTTTTT

"There has to be _something_ here about it...he's got books on everything else! And its not like its top-secret or anything, so he better not have it under lock and key!" Judy LaBaron groused to herself as she slid her fingertips along the spines of the books that were nearly stuffed to overflowing on their bookshelf. "And just because I open _one_ demonic, talking book is no reason to lock the office!"

For that is indeed where Judy was- Jalal's primary office in the Shadowchasers Headquarters. While, as his ward and technically Shadowchaser-in-training, she had a bit more access to the facilities' areas than most members of the organization, Jalal was slowly learning a few things.

One of which was that despite his many, many years of experience as negotiator and diplomat, few things had prepared him to argue and cope with the stubbornness and determination of a single teenage half-dragon girl.

Another was that when Judy was determined to do something, she was _determined_. And that by training her in various martial arts, espionage, magic and all manner of other, necessary skills for a Shadowchaser, he had invariably given her the tools she could use to get herself into all manner of trouble to attempt to satiate her curiosity.

Or in this case, dig around in stuff she really wasn't meant to know in order to find a wholly original topic for a school assignment.

Granted, the books in Jalal's office were not inherently dangerous and many were just titles that he kept handy for references and information on the spot. Apart from the one time he had carelessly left a clearly _evil_ book on the desk while dealing with an abrupt crisis that Judy had opened, there wasn't a whole of lot of trouble she could get into while in her patron's office.

Except...Jalal was not looking forwards to another call from the Headmistress of Judy's boarding school about how the girl needed counseling yet _again_, due to more papers and presentations on unicorns, dragons, demons and devils and something called 'Woolworth's Sheep of Cotton Nightmares and Apex Predatory Instincts'. A spell Jalal had never even heard of, yet Judy had discovered amongst his books and written a report on how, if given the chance, sheep were going to take over the world.

With wool.

And apparently, the bunny slippers were in on it, as he had found Judy had destroyed his favorite pair after completing her report.

So he had given her a firm lecture on the necessity of sticking to mundane subjects for school assignments, no matter how she might actually know otherwise about magical ones and had taken to locking his office door while he was out and about to drive the point home- his books were _not_ proper research material.

This would have worked well with another adult.

But as previously-stated, Jalal was rather new to the experience of dealing with teenagers.

Judy let out a huff of frustration as she moved up a shelf, glancing over the titles as she searched for anything that might sound what she was looking for. "There has to be at least _one_ book on it! And given how the cards half of these styles purport seem to be cursed or something, it should be in with the magical stuff!"

But her scanning of the shelves eventually proved fruitless and she scowled, smacking a palm against the side of the bookcase. "Why doesn't he have an index for this thing!? The reports due tomorrow and I don't have time to sit and look through every blasted book!"

The bookcase wobbled in protest at her abuse and to her surprise, a single tome slid free from it shelf and crashed to the ground at her feet, as if the structure was giving her a peace offering.

Pulling the book from the free, Judy turned it over in her hands. It was a simple black tome, with a quill pen tucked into the spine and tied to the book via a string. Written on the cover in elegant violent cursive was the words: _Pocket Codex of Index: The Guide To The Answers You Want. _

"Huh."

Opening and it flipping through the pages, she was surprised to find that they were all blank except for the first five or six. And those pages, written in Jalal's neat handwriting, were a variety of questions.

Curiously, she paged through the questions. "'What is the Reverse of Forwards?' 'How do you find the Black Library?' 'Who is this generation's Shadowchild?' 'Why does the homeworld of the shadow send things to Earth?' Gee, Jalal likes to ask some weird stuff..."

And he had apparently gotten answers, for all of the questions had a single black line through them that suggested the leader of the Shadowchasers had gotten the answers he desired. "I don't get it. It's supposed to provide answers, but all he does is list questions...seems like a funny book to use for a diary."

Then, to her surprise, violet lettering appeared below the last question Jalal had written.

_Please write your question in the space provided._

"Ooohh, I get it!" Judy plucked the quill from the spine. "It must just write out the answer in the rest of the pages. Pretty nifty way of saving space..."

Tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth, she quickly scrawled her question on the page and winced at how scraggly it looked next to Jalal's prime and proper lettering.

_What happened to all of the Dueling Style schools?_

She waited for a long moment, but the book did not do anything. "How long is this going to-?" She paused in mid-word as her question flashed slightly and she felt a lurch behind her navel.

The word spun and blurred together and she felt nauseous, light-headed and off-balance all at the same time. Then she was stumbling backwards as the world snapped back into definition and her symptoms were replaced with a pounding headache. "Ooooooogggg...good thing I didn't eat first..."

Blinking to clear her eyes and to help steady herself, the teenager opened them again and felt her jaw drop slightly. "Whoa..."

She was now standing in a large, two-story room whose walls were filled from floor to ceiling with titanic bookshelves. The floor was hardwood and there a few coffee tables and plush chairs scattered about. The shelves themselves were only broken by a small handful of doors scattered about. And despite the fact she could see no light fixtures or windows, the place was very well-illuminated.

Then something smacked into the back of her head and she yelped. "Hey! What gives!" Then another yelp as something else smacked into her. "HEY!"

Stepping aside, she stared as she realized that the objects that had hit her were books.

Books that were floating in the air with no visible means of support and judging from the lump on her head, were hardcover. As she watched, the books swooped up to the second level, followed by a half dozen more. A door opened of its own accord and they vanished through it as a stream of magazines came through in the opposite direction. They swirled around a line of paperbacks and then moved to the ground floor before neatly filing themselves away on an empty shelf.

It was the same thing everywhere she could see-literature of all shapes and kinds floating and shelving themselves or moving through a door way. And as she watched, light flashed and a stack of creepy black books that were possibly covered in flesh dropped out of the sky, only to catch themselves before they hit the ground and join their fellows in organizing themselves.

"You alright, dear? You look a little lost."

Judy whirled at the sound of the voice coming from behind, her jaw dropping the rest of the way.

"You know, I get that a lot..." The speaker said bemusedly. She was tall, probably about six-one at the least. Floor-length hair was a mix of pale greens and blues. The fact it was dripping wet and she had a towel wrapped around her indicated she had just stepped out of the shower. Despite this, she still looked like some kind of godly supermodel, with flawless skin and legs that went on forever. And curves that looked like they should have been inhumanely possible. "Not often enough from pretty young ladies, though..."

Judy felt herself redden and spluttered incoherently, the fact she was standing in some kind of strange room with floating books, teleported by another book catching up with her and she blurted out the first thing that came to her mind. "You're hot!"

The woman laughed, mirth showing in her strikingly violet eyes. "Why, thank you! What a nice young lady you are. Not the best conversation starter, but points for honesty." Still chuckling, she put a hand on her hip. "Let me go get changed into something more appropriate before you have a nosebleed and I'll help you get thing sorted."

TTTTTT

Though Judy would have thought it impossible, five minute later, they were both seated across one another at a coffee table. The woman had somehow dried her hair, done it up in a long braid, slipped into a sexy, curve-hugging, yet tasteful silver and black dress and made utterly delicious hot chocolate in those five minutes.

Leaning back on the couch and throwing an arm over the back, she crossed her legs and took a drink of her hot chocolate. "So you're Jalal's ward. Adrian mentioned that youngster had finally picked up a kid."

"I'm not a kid. I'm sixteen, thank you." Judy said with a small huff. "And I'm not actually Jalal's daughter, just his ward. He hasn't officially adopted me." Then she blinked. "Wait- Jalal's nearly a thousand years old! He's not young at all!"

"Compared to you, yes. Compared to other immortals, he's not. Adrian and I have nearly have two thousand under our belts." She smiled around her drink at Judy's expression. "I know-I look amazing for my age."

"I'll say." Judy took a sip of her hot chocolate. "Jalal told me once Adrian got married back in the eighties. Are you his wife?"

The woman laughed in reply. "Nope. He's married to a lovely twig of a blonde British woman. I'm just Phoenixia- confidante, best friend, living computer program, mother of the most adorable baby in the Multiverse and mistress to the Librarian and his wife."

The teenager nearly spat out her hot chocolate. "Mistress? Baby?!"

"It's not his, kiddo. And we immortals have a different perspective of relationships than mortals do." Phoenixia explained. "If things like that are surprising you, you're going to have an interesting time trying to get used to the Library Arcanium."

"Is that where I am?" Judy glanced around, comprehension settling in as she remembered the few times Jalal had mentioned the place while talking with her about Adrian. "It seems kind of small..."

"You're in just one room, my dear. The Library itself is infinite." She gestured with an idle hand to the space around them. "So you're lucky I was passing through when you showed up. You could have gotten lost very easily. We could have found soon enough, but some of what we keep here is very dangerous and doesn't even need to be opened or read to cause you no end of grief.

Judy blinked at the explanation. "So wouldn't this stuff be better kept in the Origin Universe, so Morgana's Kin can watch over it?"

"Mmm, no. The Origin Universe has all information of existence in its walls, but the Library is different. We're not exactly meant to be accessible to anyone but a few for very important reasons. One of which is that we are holding the _originals_ of many, many dangerous pieces of literature and artifacts. Things that are too potent to be left simply lying around, regardless if they're used for good or evil."

"And you need an infinite place to store all this?"

"Of course you do. The Library serves all of the multiverse and with an infinite number of dimensions, you therefore have an infinite number of books that need to be stored." Phoenixia explained patiently. It was obvious she had this conversation before. "It's part of Adrian's job to collect this books and upon orders of his superiors, place them where they need to be or dole out the information in them to the necessary individuals."

She took a drink of her hot chocolate. "In short, think of us kind of like the Elvis' Magic Shop from Bruce Coville's books- we're there when you need us and never in the same place twice, but we move the story along."

"That makes sense, I suppose..." Judy scratched a cheek in thought. "But who bosses Adrian around? Jalal told me that the gods answer to really no one but themselves and you'd think that some of them would get kind of pissy when another god told him to grab a book they wanted."

"Adrian is may be on the same power-level as many divine beings, but he's not a god himself and since he does not have belief in any, none of them have any authority over him. He answers only to his boss and no one wants to mess with his boss. Though Adrian does go out of his way to avoid upsetting any of them. Gods hold grudges for a long time, as we've found out about Dominel." Phoenixia waggled a finger as Judy opened her mouth. "Sorry, but that's all you're getting about it. I'm not going to tell you anymore and since you're going to be immortal someday, you'd best get used to accepting that being immortal means you simply aren't going to get all of the answers."

Judy huffed and sank back into the couch cushions grumpily. "I'm going to be immortal teenager if I don't pass this class. Jalal will have to just pass it onto me so I don't die of old age while I'm stuck in it."

"And what's keeping you from passing?"

"Teacher doesn't let me write my essays on what I want and when I finally get a chance to, I can't find anyinformation on it at all!" Judy muttered and took another drink of her hot chocolate frustratedly. "It's relative to Duel Monsters, so why can't I find any information on the Dueling Styles?!"

"Dueling Styles?" Phoenixia lifted an eyebrow slightly. "That is a bit an obscure topic. They were a fad thing, though. Combining the physical and mental disciplines of real martial arts and Duel Monsters was supposed to a result in a better, more mature and focused duelist. But given how most people just wanted to play the card game and not do all that work, most petered out. And the ones that were left wound up destroying each other in battles for supremacy."

"yeah, but no history about them at all!? In any archive? I can't even find any live practitioners! Ryo Marufuji has been dead for years and Sho is kind of hard to get a hold of since he's a Pro Duelist!" Judy groused. "There are rumors of a Psycho-style duelist, but so far, they're just rumors and I can't find them. And supposedly, there's some kind of Dueling Style in the Underworld that the current top duelist and his crew use, but there's no way in hell that Jalal would ever let me out of my room again if I went there."

"That is quite an issue...but you are in the right place, Judy." Phoenixia jerked a thumb to point a nearby bookshelf. "That book you wrote is a means of accessing the Library and it will take to the section you can find your answers in."

"Really!? That's great! Now I can..." Judy's enthusiasm slowly faded as she glanced around the room and its stuffed to the limit bookshelves as it dawned on her just how much information there was to shift through. "This is going to take forever!"

"Not really, kiddo. You've got me and I know the Library just as well as Adrian. Not to mention the books are organized by dimension so you don't have to read everything." Phoenixia leaned forwards to put her drink on the table and Judy couldn't help but admire how the woman filled out her dress and then some. "But you really shouldn't have to do all of that. There's a Shadowchaser who's also a Style duelist."

"Say what?" Judy's head snapped up with a blush to focus on Phoenixia's face. "How do you know that?"

"Oh, I met her once on while helping Adrian with some things." The older woman tapped a slender finger against her lips in thought as she dug for the memory. "Oooohh, its a bit of a secret how I met her, given it being a top-secret one, but I can tell you her part of how she stumbled into the Shadowchasers lap. She wound up involved in that tournament on Arcadia a couple of years ago."

"We learned about that in school recently-I always thought it was odd that such a closed-off nation would suddenly used Duel Monsters to introduce itself into the wider world, but there's no denying that it worked." Judy said. "Jalal mentioned that there was some stuff going on behind the scenes there once or wice

"There was and this particular Shadowchaser wound up part of it." Flipping a length of sky-blue hair over her shoulder, Phoenixia sat back and crossed her legs, ready to tell her story. "If you know anything about Psychic Dueling, then the biggest thing to know about it is that for anyone wanting to find one, the first place to stop was the Arcadia Movement..."

TTTTTTT

_The Psychic's Tale_

TTTTTTT

"Your operation is rather impressive, Divine. I am amazed that you are able to have such a visible headquarters for your group here in Tops." The speaker was a blonde-haired elf dressed in an immaculate violet-and-gold suit. Piercingly blue eyes studied Divine's office carefully as the two men entered.

"If my organization is going to expose Goodwin for what he is and bring forth an end to the discrimination between Tops and Satellite, then we will need more than words. A physical presence that is a constant reminder to the people of the new future can be far more effective a dozen speeches." Divine told him as he sat down at his desk, the elf taking the seat opposite. "So if we're going to be bringing down the tyranny of Sector Security, we need to set an example for what the Neo Domino will look like after we do so, Lan'tao."

"A new golden age for Neo Domino, equality and peace for all and headed up by the visionary Divine." Lan'tao noted dryly with a smirk. "How...generous of you to enact the change necessary for such a future."

"Well..." Divine smirked back. "One must have power to bring forth change and said power should be shared with those without in a...careful manner..."

"Indeed." Lan'tao said. "Though I have had one question burning on the tip of my tongue since I have arrived- just how do you afford all these wonderful toys? Your organization is hardly something one can simply invest in and except a return somewhere down the line."

"Ah, but we do have investors. The Arcadia Movement has one thing to invest it- our pool of...ah...unique talent." Divine laced his hands together in front him as he spoke. "It's an arrangement elegant in its simplicity- we provide duelists for those we deem needing one of our particular specialty and in turn, we receive funds and our duelists receive necessary experience."

"I see, though that can't be all of it." Lan'tao leaned back in his chair easily. "I found out about you when your organization started pulling duelists off the streets of Miami. What you are dong is hardly...above the board. Just what exactly are you blackmailing Goodwin with?"

"Ah, my apologies about that rather unfortunate incident in _your _city, Lan'tao. As for Goodwin..." Divine smiled. "Let us just say that everyone has a few skeletons in the closet and leave it at that."

"Very well, though I am wondering if you would be willing to share that particular skeleton with me." Lan'tao said. "It could be an arrangement that would end up very profitable for both of us, Divine."

"I find that hard to believe, as the philanthropist and head of the Pinata Mafia Charity Lan'tao makes his millions through trading and selling rare artifacts. An enjoyable endeavor for a select few, I'm sure, but hardly a place my Movement needs connections to." Divine told him carefully. "Even if you are more than you seem to be."

"More than I appear to be?" Lan'tao looked airily amused. "And how does that work?"

"To begin with, there is a reason that that the tabloids address you as 'Death's Right Hand." Divine gestured to the other man's right arm.

"Ah, just the usual of taking something out entirely out of context and attempting smear my name with it." Lan'tao produced his right hand, shaking down the ruffled sleeve and Divine had to work not to flinch at seeing it.

The elf's hand was nothing but jet-black bone, missing anything resembling flesh. One could count the bones in his palm, wrist and fingers. Moreover, the first knuckles on that hand all been replaced with rings with various gemstones taking the place of the actual knuckle bone. And though the rest of it was hidden in his sleeve, Divine knew that the remainder of his right arm was just like the hand. "Frightening, I'm sure, but hardly anything to be worried about. Just a prosthetic."

"Even if it is, there is the fact that I like to know the histories of anyone I'm dealing with and your name pops decades ago with an odd regularity, such as you providing the storyboard for video games like _Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door_ and more. Given that you look no older than I do, that leaves one to wonder just how exactly that is possible..." Divine trailed off suddenly, his eyes slipping out of focus for a moment.

"Mmm, yes, its amazing how a name can be passed down from grandfather to son, isn't it?" Lan'tao suggested, smiling as he saw the effects of the spell his arm generated kick in. However clever Divine was, it didn't matter because he was only Mundane. The spell would simple cause him to believe the easiest explanation for any inconsistencies in Lan'tao's history or appearance and then ignore it from that point on.

The leader of the Arcadia Movement shook his head suddenly and then continued as if the last few moments of conversation had never happened. "You are more than you appear to be, but why should it concern me what you do?"

"Let us be frank, Divine." Lan'tao smiled easily. "We both know who we really are, so you know that I run the largest drug cartel on the Eastern Seaboard. But lately, my territory has been hacked and taken away by federal agencies. So I feel it is time to expand. And where better to begin in the false utopia of Goodwin's Neo Domino City?"

"Even my protection wouldn't keep Sector Security from stomping you out in the Tops region." Divine pointed out. "You would be better off starting in Satellite."

"Fully my intention. I didn't get to where I am by being stupid, after all." Lan'tao told him. (_And the fact that Satellite and by extension, much of Neo Domino has a rather wayward Shadowkind population, means that I can spread my influence to areas you've never heard of, you foolish man.) _

But Lan'tao knew when he could get more out of a deal than most and he decided to press Divine's buttons a little further. "I hear you are trouble with a crime lord named DaPen. If you can extend the protection you have from Sector Security to me, I will take care of him for you."

Divine gave him a tight smile. DaPen had always bothered the Psychic Duelist whenever they had spoken, as something terrible about the man was just lurking beneath the surface. More to the point, the fact he couldn't dig up any history on the crime lord was frustrating him to know end. "An interesting proposition, but Satellite is run by Duel Gangs and I don't doubt several are in DaPen's pocket."

"Which is why we will use our own duelists to do so. A joint effort once I cripple DaPen's outside resources. Once he is left with nothing but duelists, it should be an easy matter to sweep the trash aside. Why, put the right spin on things and the Arcadia Movement could be heralded as the group that turned Satellite into something acceptable to the rest of Neo Domino and Goodwin." Lan'tao smirked as Divine's interested expression. The public relations benefits of turning that rundown slum into something resembling society was too tempting to resist. (_I have you now.)_

"...agreed. I grant you protection and you remove DaPen for me." Divine extended his hand and Lan'tao shook it with his regular one. "This arrangement will be a profitable one, Lan'tao."

"Indeed." The elf nodded. "Now, Divine, since I have come all this way, I would like to see one of your Psychic Duelists in action if its all the same to you. I've heard a lot about it and given our freshly-minted partnership, I can't help but feel it'd be nice to know exactly your group is capable of."

"Certainly. Always happy to show off the progess we here have made." Divine punched a button on his desk, activating the intercom. "Could you send in Rave, please?" (_And when this fool sees exactly how strong a Psychic Duelist is, he'll know that all he's done is made himself my puppet and not a 'partner' at all.)_

Those thoughts still going through his head, Divine put on a polite smile and focused on his guest. "Would you like something to eat or drink while wait?"

"No, thank you. Forgive my paranoia, but I bring my own food and drink when I travel. One too many close calls, you see." Lan'tao gestured with a beckoning finger. "One of my daughters happens have a thermos of my favorite tea on her."

Divine nearly started when the dress-clad young woman appeared seemingly out of nowhere and produced a thermos out of the sleeves of her billowy dress. Lan'tao had brought his daughters with him for this visit, but they were all so quiet and unnoticeable that had faded into the background.

The daughter finished pouring her father a cup and he nodded at she smiled and bowed to him briefly before the thermos disappeared up her sleeve and she rejoined her four siblings standing near the back of the room politely. "Are you sure it is wise to bring them along with you?"

"Of course. Not only are they going to one day run the family business, but they serve as my bodyguards as well. Who better to protect you than family, eh?" Lan'tao took a sip of his tea and smiled contentedly.

"Quite." Ignoring how the silent smiles of the man's daughters bothered him, Divine decided a change of topic was in order. "Have you heard about the tournament that is going on in the island nation of Arcadia at the moment?"

"Who hasn't? That island has been closed off for centuries to the rest of the world and suddenly opens its doors to duelists?" Lan'tao took another drink of his tea. "One would think that they're trying to pull another Duelist Kingdom."

"It certainly seems to be succeeding, The rumors coming from the island, of duelists with strange powers and of hidden treasures and wealth, however..." Divine laced his fingers together thoughtfully. "It seems like an ideal place to test out our partnership by trying to get a foothold there, doesn't it?"

"It does." Lan'tao smiled again, though this time it was at Divine's foolishness. (_You foolish human. That island is far more dangerous than you could ever realize...)_

They were saved from further smalltalk as the door to the office opened, letting in a man dressed in the Arcadia Movement's standard uniform. Alongside him stood a shorter girl, dressed in a gray hoodie and sweatpants. Her expression wasn't flat, but altogether neutral. Both clothing and expression conflicted with the vibrant pink and blue hair she had.

The man bowed to Divine as they moved up to the desk. "Sir, I've brought Rave as you've requested."

"Thank you." Divine nodded, accepted a Duel Monsters card the man handed him and then the lackey exited. "Lan'tao, meet Rave, one of our more interesting forays into the research of Psychic Duelist potential."

"A pleasure to meet you, young lady." Lan'tao lifted an eyebrow as the girl shifted her gaze to him, nodded and then returned to facing forwards. "Can you not speak?"

"She can. However, we would rather she not. Rave has an annoying flippant tongue and we got rather tied of hearing it." Divine explained. "She is also a powerful Psychic Duelist, but again she has a habit of being rather aggressive with them. She did not seem to understand exactly how good our goals are when we tried to recruit her. We had to...ah...persuade her."

"I take it this has something to with the card that you were handed, then." Lan'tao pointed to said object in Divine's hand.

"Yes." Divine flipped it around to reveal that it was the spell card Brain Control. "Particularly powerful Psychic Duelists can manifest Duel Monsters cards in the real word, though with the case of Spell and Traps, it is difficult to much more than, say use a Hinotama card to fling a fireball. However, we've been researching a way to change that-Rave is the current result."

"So you've brainwashed her, then?" Lan'tao lifted an eyebrow again, this time skeptically.

"If you care to use such a dirty word, yes." Divine waved the spell card a bit. "This card is what keeps her docile. As I've said, she's aggressive...we had to make sure she didn't have access to anything with an edge before we started our research. She is a Style Duelist and a trained fighter- absolutely dangerous with a sword."

"A Style Duelist and a Psychic Duelist in one package? A rare find."

"Style Duelists are something you can learn, Psychic Duelists have to be born, Lan'tao." Divine slipped the Brain Control card into his breast pocket and then opened his desk drawer, producing a Duel Disk. "Now then, you said you wanted a demonstration..."

"I did." Lan'tao turned to his daughters and then pointed at one of them. "You. Duel the young lady, please."

The daughter nodded and stepped forwards, producing a Pocket Duel Disk out of her dress and sliding it onto her wrist. "Yes, Father."

"Rave, give our guest a good show, please." Divine tossed the disk in his desk to her and smirked slightly. "Try not to injure her permanently."

"Whatever." Rave caught the device and slid it into her wrist, moving to stand opposite of the daughter. "Do you have a name?" (RLP: 8000)

"Father calls me Secondus." The young woman replied politely and activated her own disk. "Let us begin the game!" (SLP: 8000)

A giant coin appeared between the two and flipped itself into the air. Then it came crashing down, revealing a blank side. Secondus nodded at the result. "A tails means that I go first."

Drawing, she tossed the card onto her disk. "I summon Thunder King Rai-Oh in attack mode position." A blue humanoid robot appeared on her field. However, its arms and legs had been replaced by electrodes and it hummed as it hovered in front of her field. (1900/1200) "Then I set one card face-down and end my turn."

"I draw." Rave did so and like her opponent, tossed the card onto he disk. "I summon out Starsteel Alsafi in attack mode." Her monster was..unusual. A machine warrior built entirely out of a strange blue metal, it clenched a fist and pointed it at Rai-oh as it appeared. "Attack Rai-Oh! _Star Punch!" _(1900/800)

"Our monsters scores are equal-they will be destroyed together." Secondus blinked as the machine charged across the field, fist cocked back to strike and then froze midway across the field. "I beg your pardon?"

"When Alsafi attacks, I may check the top card of my deck. If it is a Starsteel monster, I may send it to the graveyard. If its not, the card shuffled is back into my deck." Rave flipped up the card and held it up. "A Starsteel, so it goes to the graveyard and then Alsafi gains five hundred attack points!" (1900-2400)

The machine continued his charge across the field, a blue glow wreathing his fist. The blow smashed right through Rai-Oh, leaving the machine to spark rapidly before exploding. (SLP: 7500)

Rave grabbed a card from her hand and slid it into her disk as her monster returned her side of the field. "I set this face-down and end my turn."

"Draw." Secondus tucked the card in her hand and then slid another onto her disk. "Nothing I have can beat your monster's boosted score. One monster in face-down defense mode completes my turn."

"Draw." Rave pointed across the field. "_Star Punch!"_ As Alsafi attacked, she flipped up the top card of her deck, revealing it to be a spell card. Without changing her expression, she simply shuffled the card back into her deck as Alsafi punched the set monster in two.

"That was Naturia Cherries. Since it was destroyed in battle, I can set two more of it from my deck in face-down defense position." Secondus watched as two animated cherries appeared in front of her, giggling before they were replaced by brown-backed cards.

Rave studied the two cards for a moment, then nodded. "Turn end."

Secondus drew and then one of her set cards vanished in a burst of light. "I tribute one of my monsters to summon out Naturia Bamboo Shoot." The monster lived up to its name, being a teardrop-shapped piece of bamboo with short arms and legs. "When Naturia Bamboo Shoot is summoned via tribute of a Naturia monster, my opponent becomes unable to use any Spell or Trap cards." (2000/2000)

A spell card appeared in front of her. "With the card Burden of the Mighty in play, all of my opponent's monsters lose one hundred attack points times their level." Alsafi slumped as his power dropped. (1900-1500)

Rave watched dispassionately as the Bamboo Shoot came across the field and body-slammed her machine to dust. (RLP: 7500)

"To complete my turn, I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy my own set card." A wind howled and the card shattered. "That was Spell Groundwork and when it is destroyed, I can select one continuous spell card in my deck and add it to my hand. It cannot be activated this turn." She held up a second Burden of the Mighty. "End of turn."

"Draw." Rave did so and then glanced at the card before tossing it onto her disk. "I set one monster in defense mode. End of turn."

Secondus drew and plugged a card into her disk. "I activate a second Burden of the Mighty and then normal summon King Tiger Wanghu in attack mode." With a low roar, a Siberian tiger appeared on the field, its body covered in armor. "With this monster in play, any monster that has fourteen hundred or less attack points when it is summoned is destroyed." (1700/1000)

The Psychic Duelist watched, almost without interest, as the tiger slashed her set card to pieces and a cackling came from said pieces. "Morphing Jar requires both players to discard their hands and draw five new cards."

Secondus complied with effect, as did Rave and then pointed across the field. The Bamboo Shoot flew across the field and smashed into Rave headlong, sending her staggering a step. (RLP: 5500) "I set one card face-down. End of turn."

Divine almost seemed to scowl as Rave got back to her feet. "A lock deck..."

"Yes. I find it is a rather effective way to deal with my enemies." Lan'tao crossed his legs with a smirk. "Thanks to the Burden of the Mighty Cards, there are no monsters Rave can summon that will have above fourteen hundred attack points and thus will be destroyed by the Tiger. And thanks to Naturia Bamboo Shoot, Rave can not break the lock or defend herself with Spells and Traps."

"And to make that little combo complete, that set card is Light of Intervention, isn't it?" Divine narrowed his eyes.

"Correct." Lan'tao cast a critical eye at him. "Your Psychic Duelist is hardly what I have heard and when you talked about all this research you were putting into her, I expected something far more impressive." He folded his arms and turned his attention back to the duel. "She is nothing more than puppet."

"A puppet that I am pulling the strings of." Divine pulled the Brain Control card out and spoke directly to his duelist. "Rave, Lan'tao just called you a puppet. Are you going to let an insult like that to your duelist pride slide?"

Rave clenched her fist, her body trembling as a soft blue glow flickered to life around her body, fading and in out. "Di...vine..."

"Don't try to resist my control, Rave, I'm only helping you." Divine murmured and the card in his hand glowed softly as he put some psychic force behind his words. "Don't let Lan'tao try to steal your duelist's pride...that's the most important thing to you, isn't it?"

"Y-yes..." The trembling increased slightly, the aura dimming to a faint glow, but finally locking into visibility.

"Then stop him. Win the duel. Use your power and _crush _the duelist before you." Divine commanded.

"Yes...I have to win!" The blue aura darkened and Rave's head lifted, her eyes brimming with determination and pride. "It's my turn, draw!"

She swept the card free of her deck and everyone else in the room felt their clothes ripple from the wind the action produced. "Your lock is powerful...but I'm going to tear it and you down in this turn!"

"You cannot even play any cards. Especially now that I am activating my Light of Intervention card." Secondus pointed out as the trap flipped up, calm despite the girl's aura and ferocity. "You have no options."

"Oh, yes I do!" Rave's graveyard slid out cards. She grabbed them and held them up in a fan to reveal their total number was five. "By banishing Starsteel Alfasfi along with three Starsteel monsters and a special Spell card known as a Constellation Engine from the graveyard, I can Fusion Summon your defeat!"

Secondus and Lan'tao stared in amazement as four of the blue-metal machines appeared in the air above her, then were pulled together in a flash of light. What crashed hard onto her field as made out of the same metal as its components, but something far, far larger in size. It most of its body was coiled around Rave in order to fit into the room and five heads roared together as they awakened. "Starsteel Hydra!" (2700/0)

Rave pointed at the two Burden of the Mighty cards as they glowed. "My monster is level six, so it only looses twelve hundred points and that means at fifteen-hundred attack points, you can't destroy it. But its a moot point anyway, since when Hyrda is summoned, all face-up Spell and Trap cards on your field are destroyed!"

Three of the Hydra's heads flashed out and devoured the cards easily. "For each one, it gains one extra attack this turn!"

She pointed up at her monster's chest cavity, which Secondus realized was simply an empty hole, like a screen or a window. "The Constellation Engine I banished was the Leo constellation and since I used it to fusion summon a Starsteel monster, it gains one thousand attack points!" An image of the Leo Constellation appeared in the chest cavity and the Hydra roared again as its power rose. (2700-3700) "Destroy Naturia Bamboo Shoot! _Star Shoot-Leo Charge!" _

The center head spat out a blaze of blue energy that morphed into a lion and smashed into the Naturia monster, burning it away to ash easily. Secondus cried out in real pain and staggered backwards as the energy lion slashed her across the chest, tearing her dress. (SLP: 5800)

She lifted her hand and stared at with wide eyes to find it stained slightly with droplets of blood. "What...how...?" Then her gaze lifted and fear filled her eyes at the card she saw Rave holding up. "Limiter Removal...!"

Lan'tao had to shield his eyes from the flash as the Starsteel Hydra launched its last two attacks, the power rocking the office. There was a scream of pain and then only silence.

Lowering his arms, he couldn't hide his surprise as he saw that the two attacks had hurled Secondus into the bookshelf behind her, the bookcase itself utterly broken and the books piles of paper scattered around. The wall was cratered slightly from the impacts and though he could tell his daughter was still breathing, it looked she had several broken bones.

Rave was smiling as she surveyed the wreckage and the duel's holograms faded away, but then the expression dropped from her face to be replaced by one of surprised horror. "What...No! No! My powers aren't supposed to be used like this!"

She whirled on her heel, launching herself towards the desk's occupants, Duel Disk drawn back to strike. "Divine! _You bastard!_"

Then she was eating carpet as Lan'tao's remaining daughters all tackled her, pinning her to the floor and emphasis that they meant business with several pointy weapons that Divine was surprised could fit in their dresses. "I don't have time for you-let me go!"

The aura returned to life around and her eyes glowed blue, but Divine swiftly held out the Brain Control card and exerted his own will. Instantly, Rave shook her head desperately. "You bastard...!"

"Harsh words will do you no good, Rave...I'm just trying to help, after all." Divine watched as her head slumped, followed shortly by her body. "You may release her. She is no threat..then or now."

Lan'tao gestured, his daughters stepping away from Rave with one of them going to gingerly pull Secondus out of the wreckage and help her out of the way. "I can see what you mean by aggressive. Why did your control slip like that?"

"It wasn't a loss of control, more like a redirection of aggression. Rave is a powerful Psychic, but she also an equally powerful pride. By loosening the restraints on it, she becomes a strong duelist due to the natural instinct for battle all duelists share." Divine watched as Rave stood up, neutral and docile once again. "As you saw, though, if she is not given an appropriate target..."

"Yes. I understand." Lan'tao clapped his hands. "Color me impressed, Divine. Psychic duelists are something to not be underestimated, a mistake I won't be making again."

The elf gestured towards Rave. "Given this fine demonstration, I would like to borrow her from you to help me with a Duel Gang that is plaguing my own territory."

"Oh? This is rather sudden..." Divine chuckled. "Well, I'm sure we can work something out. After all, what's a small loan between friends?"

"Nothing, nothing at all is what it is." Lan'tao extended his good hand and the two men shook, each feeling they had gotten the better of the other.

TTTTTTT

_Days later..._

It was a beautiful sunset, coloring the calm ocean a mix of oranges, red and yellows. Even as Rave watched, a series of fish suddenly broke the surface and dove back down. Each splash looked like a drop of molten liquid.

"Enjoying the view, are you?"

She turned and smiled at the speaker. "Yes, Lan'tao. It is very pretty."

"Isn't it, though?" The elf smiled back and walked up behind her as she returned to watching it as his rather large yacht plowed through the water. He rested his bone hand on her shoulder. "Are you excited for the job I have for you?"

"Yes, Lan'tao!" She nodded vigorously and then paused, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. "Only if the opponent is as strong as you say! I won't forgive you if I have to duel somebody weak!"

"Oh, your opponent will be strong, Rave. Very strong, indeed." Lan'tao squeezed her shoulder. "I'm counting on you to win."

"I won't let you down!"

"I know you won't, my dear." With that, Lan'tao left her staring at the ocean and made his way back along the deck to his cabin.

As he entered, a shadow detached itself from the wall and fell into step behind him. "Why did you insist on bringing that girl, my lord?"

"I bring her because she is an edge I can use, Gregory. Something my enemy knows nothing about." Lan'tao accepted the wineglass Gregory offered him. "Did you accomplish everything I asked?"

"Yes, my lord." The shadow produced the Brain Control card that Divine had given Lan'tao when the Arcadia Movement leader has loaned her out. "We have replaced Divine's ineffiecent psychic controls with a powerful spell. She knows nothing but that she is yours and will do as you command her."

"Excellent." The elf took the card and slid it into his interior breast pocket. "With magic controlling her and not that idiot's brainwashing, her powers and dueling intellect are unrestrained. She will be able to duel at full power. I doubt _she_ has ever even countered something like Rave before, so her arrogance in underestimating Rave will be her downfall."

"My lord, are you sure this is wise?" Gregory followed Lan'tao as he made his way farther into the boat's interior. "It has been one thousand years, but our spies report her powers are still very formidable."

"My spies tell me only what their eyes tell them. I know the Shadow Queen personally." Lan'tao told Gregory and took a drink of his wine. "She is at a crisis now, thanks to her little tournament plan failing to do anything to stop her enemies. There is no way she will not accept my help."

"But sir, you killed her Champion! The one you said she loved before all others!" Gregory protested. "Her wrath will be more than terrible and-"

"Silence." Lan'tao scowled in the shadow's direction and it retreated slightly. "The Champion died one thousand years ago, but she doesn't know that I was one who did it-how could she? That blasted unicorn maiden is the more likely suspect and even that hero knew I did, I doubt she'd be inclined to tell the Queen anything."

The pair entered the crime lord's room-ornate, luxurious and dark. "And even she found me suspect as to why I am returning right now, what I bring with me will ensure that she accepts me." He walked over to a cloth-covered pedestal and gripping it, he whipped it off with a flourish. "Behold, Gregory, the key to my plan."

On the pedestal lay a longsword. The blade was well over a yard long, the mirror-like surface of its blackness almost seeming to negate the light around rather than reflect or absorb. The handle was also black and was a simple cruciform, but long enough that the weapon could have been wielded with one or two hands with ease. Only the crossguard had any color to, a gold detailing of two sapphire-eyed wolves fighting that extended into a lattice-work that made its way up a foot of the blade's length before tapering off. "The sword Steadfast, once called Oblivion and the Champion's personal blade."

"The Champion's weapon?" Gregory's body rippled in surprise, swirling around the weapon to peer at it from various angles. "I thought it was lost in that final battle."

"It was and the heroes took it with them they left. Five hundred years ago, a knight and a rather funny magician found it and used the weapon to defeat the Queen's spawn then. It wound up in the knight's family, but I had it stolen." Lan'tao took another sip of his drink and watched Gregory inspect it.

"Why?"

"That sword was tempered and forged with the Queen's own magical blood. The Champion and the Queen used it to slay a powerful demon that was immune to magic and could not be slain by ordinary means- it acted as channel for her power once the Champion was able to pierce the demon and her magic destroyed it from the inside out." Lan'tao moved over to the sword, running his eyes over the magnificent weapon's length. "And when the knight used it five hundred years later, the same properties made it a lethal weapon against the Queen and her spawn."

"Is this why you want it?" Gregory's amorphous end that served as his 'head' peered up at his master. "So you may kill her with it?"

"Too easy, Gregory and hardly worth the effort. No, you see...the same properties that make this sword a channel for her power can work in reverse. As a _siphon._" Lan'tao smiled darkly. "All I need to do is stab her with this blade and I can drain all her magic, all of her immortality, into myself."

"A thousand years is a long time to wait for such a chance, my lord. Are you sure that you will be able to get it?" Gregory reached a tendril to pluck the weapon off the pedestal, then shrieked and withdrew it as black fire burned to life around the weapon.

"Idiot- do you think such a magical weapon would just let anyone wield it?" The elf scolded the living shadow and reached with his bone arm. His fingers clicked and clacked as they wrapped around the hilt and he lifted the weapon free. "I had to promise the Queen's soul to Demogorgon in order to receive this arm that would allow me to hold the weapon. The soul of the proxy of Graz'zt was too much to resist."

He slashed the sword through the air a few times, twirling it expertly. "And yet, the weapon's secrets are still kept form me."

"Master?" Gregory peered at him curiously.

"It is a powerful weapon, Gregory, but it is not as powerful in my hands as it was in the Champion's. Its ultimate technique, the _Mugetsu, _remains out of my reach. And since Oblivion became Steadfast, it has gained a holy power rather than a dark one. At this point, I don't think even the Champion could use it to its full potential again unless they could convert it back." Lan'tao replaced the weapon on the pedestal. "But it doesn't matter. It will serve me for the purpose I need."

The elf sat down in a luxuriously recliner, swirling his line. "I have sold my daughters' souls to Squarefoot for my extended life and now it seems that history is inclined to repeat itself, Gregory. The Queen's island balks at her power, her enemies stand at her doorstep and desperation plays at all sides..."

Wine spilled over his hand as the glass shattered with one powerful flex of his grip. "Except this time, _I _will _win_."

TTTTTTT

In the darkness of the Shadow Queen's bedchamber, a pair of silver and black eyes snapped open.

Lyrius rose from the bed, deftly making his way to a balcony. He stared out over the island, watching the lights of Petalburg twinkle in the distance. The wind was chill, tugging at his dark prismatic locks, but he ignored it as he scanned the horizon. No ordinary human would have been to see anything, but he had long since ceased being ordinary.

"Lyrius?" The Queen's voice floated out after him and he heard her slid out of bed, padding across the stone floor after him. "Beloved, why are you up?"

"Oblivion is returning to the island." He told her, still scanning the ocean waters carefully.

"Are you sure?" She regarded him carefully.

"Oblivion is my sword. I would know its power anywhere." Lyrius pointed out in a seemingly random direction. "There-that light in distance. It is on that vessel."

"A vessel approaching the island?" The Queen frowned and her eyes shone a bit brighter as she reached with her power to get a feel for what was in her territory.

A dark hiss slid from between her lips and she grabbed the balcony's railing violently, angry strength causing it to creak and groan. "Lan'tao! That traitor dare show his face to me!?"

Lyrius' face darkened slightly. "Lan'tao still lives...such an oversight needs correcting."

"It is not for lack of trying, beloved." The Queen growled, the railing bending and twisting. "He is slippery and I do not know how he has achieved his immortality, but he has avoided my grasp for centuries..."

"And now he walks right into it, brazen as ever." Lyrius watched the dot of light. "He does not know that because of our bond, you knew that he had killed me one thousand years ago."

"So he returns because he knows of my situation and seeks to regain favor by showing up at the last minute..." The Queen smiled with absolute viciousness. "So let us play his game when he arrives, let him think that he has his path to victory. And then...he will understand new meanings of suffering in exchange for taking you from me."

He stood behind her, wrapping his arms around her body firmly. "But I am here now, _malthena_."

"Yes. And let us not waste the present." She slid from his grasp, pulling him back into their bedroom with a lascivious smile. "A thousand years is a lot to catch up on..."

TTTTTTT

Judy blinked in surprise as Phoenixia stopped talking. "Hey! You can't stop the story there! It can't end like that!"

"Oh, it doesn't." Phoenixia assured her. "It's just that the rest of the tale is someone else's to tell."

"That totally sucks!" Judy groused at her. "Why can't you finish it?"

"Because, Judy, I like to tell what happened to me next myself."

Judy whirled in her seat. "How did you-I mean-"

"What?" Rave looked like she hadn't aged beyond a day from what Phoenixia had described her as looking, save for the Shadowchaser mark on her face and the fact her hair was now violet and green and quite a bit longer. "You wanted to learn about my Dueling Style, didn't you?"

"Yes, but how did you get here?" Judy gestured to the Pocket Codex she held in her hand. "I kind of have the magic book."

"That would be me." Jalal appeared from around a bookshelf, a stern expression on his face. "I thought I warned you about messing with my books, Judy."

"Uh-oh..." Judy gulped and offered him a weak smile. "It was an honest research topic this time?"

"Why do you think I went to trouble of getting Rave in the first place?" Jalal asked. "If you had been patient, you would have learned that I wasn't in my office because I was getting her."

"Okay, okay, I'll be more patient and stuff in the future." Judy promised hastily and then fixed her attention on Rave. "How does the story end? Tell me!"

"Wellllllllll..."

TTTTTTT

A/N: _The stage is set, the actors all converge to play out their parts...but even if the script is ancient history, history can be changed..._

_This story's conclusion will happen in Cyber Commander's Thousand Year Door Redux! Don't miss it!_

_My thanks to Cyber Commander for letting me tie my own work into his like this and for being patient for me as I flip-flop back and forth on how I wanted to do it. _

_A complete list of Rave's card will be available in the chapter she debuts in TYDR. _

_For anyone who cares, Lan'tao's daughters are named Prima, Secondus, Tertia, Quattra and Pentanna. If anyone can tell me which book/film I got this naming theme from, you earn a gold star!_

_I apologize for anyone who felt the duel was short- I didn't want to reveal too much of her strategy. And I apologize to anyone who felt this chapter was kind of of out-of-place. As I mentioned when I started 'Tales' I was hoping to experiment with writing choices I wouldn't get to otherwise and this is one of those experiments. Also, I like to strengthen continuity between Shadowchaser stories, so anyone who can catch all the references to various ones in this story gets a__nother gold star._

_Later Dayz, y'all._


End file.
